


You, Me, Ice Cream, and a Bicycle

by Lightpoint



Series: Niima Cove [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awesome Leia, BB-8 and R2-D2 are Labrador Retreivers, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff and Angst, Huddling For Warmth, I DID say that they're taking it slow, Past Relationship(s), Power of Love, Reference to Past Emotional Abuse, Skywalker Family Feels, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Snowed In, Walks On The Beach, kylo ren is a huge bag of dicks, modern au rey will always be some form of engineer because canon, reylo ended badly, stormpilot is the beta couple, they are best friends with rey, when the dog likes you
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-30
Updated: 2017-11-11
Packaged: 2018-05-30 03:55:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 48,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6407746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lightpoint/pseuds/Lightpoint
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Modern AU.  Rey's relationship with Kylo ended badly (very badly) and she wants nothing to do with romance. Enter Luke Skywalker, and she's totally not developing a crush, nope, she's not in denial. </p><p>Contains background Stormpilot, references to past emotional abuse, emotional hurt/comfort, fluff, and many, <i>many</i> romance novel/movie tropes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Fog

**Author's Note:**

> Based on the following prompt for the TFA Kink Meme:
> 
>  
> 
> _Something based on this Siri quote: http://41.media.tumblr.com/8c72ddb6e37d68d09d430a658457c235/tumblr_nwe7h5vKZM1riowtoo1_500.jpg_
> 
>  
> 
> _Basically Rey had a relationship that ended badly and wants nothing to do with romance. Enter Luke Skywalker, total silverfox and she's totally not developing a crush, nope, she's not on denial._
> 
>  
> 
> Prompt [here.](https://tfa-kink.dreamwidth.org/2821.html?thread=4507909#cmt4507909)
> 
>  **Disclaimer:** I own nothing Star Wars related, and am absolutely positively not making any money off of this.

Rey leaned against the reception desk and wished she could disappear. Or had a time machine, so that this day would have been over _yesterday._ She smiled awkwardly at Finn, who was glaring at the elevator as though he could summon Kylo with the intensity of his rage.

“He’s here,” said Finn. “I saw his car in the garage.” His boyfriend snorted, tapping his foot against the metal cart they had borrowed from said garage. 

“That’s not a car,” said Poe. “That’s a wheelbarrow with delusions of grandeur.”

“Well, it’s fifteen past,” said Rey. “Think I should call him?”

“No!” said Finn.

“Hell no!” said Poe. 

“Excuse me?” said the receptionist. 

They all turned. 

“Are you Ms. Rey Smith?” 

Rey nodded.

“Then I have a message for you from Mr. Ren in 14-C.”

The receptionist slid a large manila envelope across the counter, marked _’Rey’_ in huge red letters. 

“Mr. Ren wishes me to inform Ms. Smith that he is currently unavailable, and that – “ The receptionist cleared his throat awkwardly. “That most of her ‘stuff’ has been forwarded to this address…” He slid a piece of paper across the desk. “I have the rest here.” 

The receptionist pushed a large green duffel bag out from behind the desk. Rey stared at it numbly. She did some vague math in her head. _If my jeans, t-shirts, socks, and maybe my khakis and the boring underwear are in there, what the_ hell _did he do to my shoes?_

“Who the hell does he – “

Finn clasped Poe’s shoulder, and shook his head, looking pointedly at Rey.

Rey couldn’t make herself lift the bag. She was barely holding onto the envelope. 

Finn stepped around her and slung the bag over his shoulder. 

“Leave the cart,” he said.

Poe wrapped his arm around Rey and steered her out the door.

“Looks like he’s keeping the chair,” she said shakily.

“We’ll be back,” Finn growled. 

 

####

 

They sat on the edge of a cliff overlooking Niima Cove, passing a bottle of rum between them, until the sun went down. When the fog rolled in and the bone-deep cold seeped in from the bay, they climbed into the back of Poe’s pickup truck and bundled themselves up in old fleece blankets, with Rey in the middle. The blankets were old and ratty, and smelled strongly of wet dog.

“I’m going to be digging hair out of my nose for a week,” huffed Rey as she snuggled in between the two men. BB, Poe’s yellow Labrador retriever, was a frequent fellow traveler. Rey usually wound up with a lapful of squirming dog when she squeezed in between Finn and Poe in the front seat, especially on camping trips. 

Poe rolled his eyes and elbowed her in the ribs. They lay in silence as the foghorn sounded, long and mournful, and the wind moaned in the crags and caves, rolling in with the crash of the waves. Rey felt the sob that had been building all day rise to the surface. Her shoulders shook as tears ran silently down her face. Finn squeezed her hand, and pulled her close, just holding her. Poe slid in and tucked her head under his chin as Finn rocked her. 

Rey fell asleep as the pain drained away, leaving a raw, empty ache, shielded, for now, in the arms of her friends.

 

####

 

“So I found a place,” Rey said casually, filling her travel thermos with coffee. 

Poe narrowed his eyes.

“Where?” he asked, setting down his mug. Rey smiled sadly. She’d been living with Finn and Poe for a month.

 _More like they’ve been taking care of me for a month,_ she thought. 

The first AK (‘After Kylo’, as Poe had dubbed them) week had been a vague, dull blur. She woke up, went to work, ate, and went to sleep on their couch. 

Wash, rinse, repeat. 

Finn and Poe had given her as much space as they could, considering that she was living out of their living room. She came out of her shell bit by bit. She started to laugh with them in the morning, joining in with Poe’s good-natured teasing as Finn’s (very necessary) coffee pushed him into the land of the living, and with Finn ribbing Poe for his utterly appalling taste in breakfast cereal - _Lucky Charms, seriously? You think you know a person…_

Soon she took over ‘dog duty’, and started to wake up early to take BB out for her morning constitutional. Her friends were quite appreciative – Finn was a junior accounts executive at the First Order Incorporated, and tended to keep very uncivilized hours. Luckily for their relationship, Poe slept like a rock after a day in his auto shop, so Finn never woke him when he slid in next to him at 3AM. This meant that, no matter how much they loved BB, neither were especially enthused about taking her out in the morning. 

It was good timing, for Rey. There weren’t many people up and about at 6, so she had space to lose herself in the pleasant burn of physical activity. No one else who was out bothered her either, thanks to the large Lab at her side. 

She felt like she was helping, like she was becoming part of something. That helped more than anything. But it had reached the point where she just couldn’t impose any longer. She needed to strike out on her own, just…be for awhile. 

“It’s a few blocks from work. It’s not much,” she said, holding up a hand at Poe’s alarmed expression. “But it’s pretty clean, there’s an elevator, and the street is well lit.” 

“Is it safe?” Poe asked, his voice serious. 

“…Yes,” she said. _As much as that part of town can be, anyway._

“Does the fact that it’s on almost the opposite side of the city as Kylo have anything to do with it?”

“Maybe. Looks nothing like our - _his_ \- place, anyway.” _Not ours anymore. Stop thinking ours._

Poe got up and walked over to her, radiating worry.

“…Rey, just know that you can stay here as long as you need. Really,” he said.

“I know,” said Rey, smiling sadly. “But I think it’s time you got your living room back.” 

Poe pulled her in for a hug.

“Really,” he said quietly. “We’ve loved having you here.”

Rey smiled into his shoulder, her chest tight. A part of her really _did_ want to stay. 

“I – Oh crap - I’ve got to go – It’s almost 8,” she said, glancing at the clock with alarm. “I’m signing the lease this evening, too, so I might be a little late. Oh,” she paused on the way out the door. “I’m moving in this weekend. See you!”

She left before she could catch Poe’s reaction. 

 

####

 

 _Thank God it’s Friday,_ Rey thought. She could have sworn the clock started moving backwards halfway through that last design meeting. 

_You have a job. You have a job. You have a job._

Rey had been drawing on that mantra quite a lot lately. And she really _was_ glad she had it – it wasn’t bad _all_ the time, and she actually thought that she and her co-workers made a pretty good team. She just didn’t want it to be her whole life.

 _But maybe it will be,_ she thought. _Would that be so bad?_

She decided to table that thought for now. _One thing at a time._

 _At least I remembered my umbrella,_ she thought, standing just inside the sliding glass doors of Unkarr Industrial Consultants, referred to by the locals as UIC. The morning’s light drizzle had turned into a downpour during lunch, and showed no signs of stopping. She still wrecked her loafers on the way to her car.  
UIC was located a few blocks from the oldest part of the city – the Industrial District. It was crammed with old factory buildings, some refurbished as apartments, most abandoned. There were far more of the latter than there had been when Rey was a child - The economy had not been kind to Jakku, half the local businesses pulling out after an earthquake had all but destroyed Empire Steel Works, a manufacturing company whose factories and R+D firm had employed over half the city. 

There had been several attempts to revive the company. Currently the largest working factory was run by First Order Incorporated, but Rey wasn’t sure how long that would last. Rumor had it that they had some major financial backing, but they were having a lot of problems keeping workers. The union wouldn’t touch them, and the CEO was under fire for ‘allegedly’ hiring undocumented immigrants under the table, paying them off the books, and so little that it was almost indentured servitude. 

They had yet to hire UIC for consulting work.

Rey knew why. She just hoped that her boss never figured it out.

_Not that they’d let me on the contract anyway…_

She sighed and drove towards the long line of steel and cement buildings that she was about to call home. The Industrial District had become home to the less fortunate residents, and had filled up with cheap housing in the habitable buildings, and squatters in the not-so-livable ones. It actually wasn’t all that different from the rest of the city. 

Frankly, Rey figured it could’ve been worse. She could be back with Kylo.

The leasing office was about 10 minutes from her job – she had plenty of time for her appointment, so she stopped at the run-down hardware store (housed in a repurposed mill) and bought a ‘bug bomb’ – After the spider infestation in her first apartment, she’d always made a point of pre-emptively dousing anyplace she was going to live in with bug poison before she brought in her furniture.

 _Not that that’s going to be a problem this time..._

Rey gripped the steering wheel and took a deep breath, pushing down the ache welling up inside. 

_Never again._

 

####

 

Technically, she hadn’t lied to Poe. 15 Ach-To Avenue _had_ an elevator. Kind of. From a certain point of view. It was a freight lift with a rusty, treaded metal floor, and metal struts on the sides that you could see around, right into the pitch-black shaft. It emitted a metallic screech that belonged in a disaster movie every time it moved, and rocked alarmingly whenever someone stepped in and pulled the cage door shut. 

Rey didn’t mind it, not really. She’d worked in a coal power plant in her undergrad years – as long as the OSHA signoff was current, she was cool with it. 

It definitely set the tone for the building, though. It had been one of the smaller Empire manufacturing buildings, and the smell of cutting fluid and metal shavings still drifted through the halls. Not that Rey minded – she rather liked it. It reminded her of better times. 

The hallway on floor 7, though, was all refurbished wood and cinder blocks. The ceilings were high and lined with caged fluorescent lights. However, the floor-to-ceiling windows filled the space with natural light, giving it an open, floating appearance during the day.

It was, essentially, the total opposite of the apartment she'd shared with Kylo Ren. She’d had enough Ralph Lauren wallpaper, fine-grained, cream carpet, and tastefully muted, artificial light - _display case light_ \- to last her a lifetime.

Rey’s room was around the corner from the elevator – a corner suite next to one of the hallway windows. The rent was cheap enough for her to afford two bedrooms and a sizable common space, so there was only one other apartment in this part of the hallway – 710, directly across from her.

She eyed the door curiously. The hallway was broad enough for there to not be too much chance of awkwardly bumping shoulders if they both entered and exited at the same time, so that was a plus. A small chalkboard hung on the door, with a piece of chalk and an eraser tied to the top. The board was slightly dusty – it had probably just been wiped clean. Rey squinted – she could make out a piece of whatever had been written last - _Shy…Sky-something? Huh._

A pair of well-worn, slightly damp running shoes sat on the plain brown doormat. _They must have just gotten back,_ Rey thought. The storm outside had just started to die down. _Who would go running in_ that?

Rey grimaced as her own soggy loafers squelched out water. _I’d better leave these outside, too._ She unlocked her door, balancing her computer bag, bug poison, and purse precariously on her arms, and kicked off her ruined shoes. _Ergh…_

She propped the door open to let the place air out and walked slowly in, taking in the space.

The common area was split between the kitchen – which looked like a failed design student had given up halfway – and the living room. The master bedroom was up in the loft, accessible by an iron-railed staircase to the left of the door. The splintery wood floor creaked under her feet, sending up little clouds of dust every time she stepped. The brick and concrete walls were chipped and stained, and she’d probably need a power washer to get all the grime out of the windows. But the main space was flooded with light – almost the entire far wall was taken up by the same floor-to-ceiling windows as in the hallway. Not even the scuffed, dirty glass could hide the soft, rosy colors of the sunset.

And it was hers. 

She headed to the window, grinning from ear to ear. Uncontrollable giggles bubbled up inside her. 

_Hers._

She raised her arms up and twirled, laughing. She all but danced across the room, wanting to take in everything. Then wet pantyhose met linoleum.  
She went down hard, fortunately managing to take the impact on the side of her thigh. 

_“Crap!”_ she yelped. _Well, that’s going to bruise..._

“Are you all right?”

Rey’s heart jumped into her mouth.

A man in a t-shirt and sweatpants was standing in her doorway. He looked like he’d been caught in the rain, or had a close encounter with an angry firehose – his graying hair was dripping into his collar, though the shirt was so soaked that it barely mattered. He was holding a mostly-dry towel – clearly he’d been trying to dry off. 

“Yeah,” she said, grabbing the counter and getting to her feet. “I’m fine. Just a little slip.” 

“Ok, great,” he said awkwardly. “I heard someone yell, so I figured I’d…Check.” He smiled sheepishly, patted at the water beading in his neatly trimmed beard. “Sorry, I got soaked outside, so this is – “

“No shoes?” It was out of her mouth before Rey could stop it. 

He looked down at his bare (and wet) feet.

“Ah, no,” he said, slightly red. “I just came out here when I heard you yell. I just got back from a run and -- ” 

“Oh, are those yours?” Rey asked, heading over and pointing at the running shoes on the mat. She could see the door to apartment 710 open over his shoulder. 

The man looked behind him and grimaced.

“Sorry,” he said. “I’m used to being the only one in this hallway, so I sometimes leave stuff out here.” The wet t-shirt clung to his lean form as he leaned over to pick them up. Rey hastily looked away, wrenching her thoughts away from the thin material stretching across unexpectedly strong shoulders when he rose. He held the shoes at arm’s length, a look of exaggerated disgust on his face. “These are definitely coming inside.”

“No, it’s ok,” said Rey, pointing at her own shoes. “I sure can’t say anything.” They stood awkwardly for a moment. Then they both spoke at the same time.

“I’m Rey – “

“Luke – “ 

They both laughed.

“Ladies first,” said Luke. Rey smiled, her cheeks flaming.

“Rey Smith,” she said, and held out her hand. “I’m moving in this weekend.”

“Luke Skywalker,” he said, taking it. “It’s great to meet you.”

“You too,” she said, turning red. Bright blue eyes smiled at her. “I really think I’m going to like it here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Again, I have 3 chapters planned. Beginning, middle, end, and all that stuff...  
>  **EDIT 6/21/16: LOL looks like I just ate my words again...There *is* a plan, though, it's just taking longer to get there than I thought it would, meaning this fic will be ~~10 chapters~~ around ~~12 chapters~~ 2/21/2017 EDIT: Ok nope, I have removed the chapter limit. I know where it's going, but imposing length limits is cramping my style xD **
> 
> 2\. Yep, Rey's pretty wrecked. It was an emotionally abusive relationship, where everything is below the surface, so she has the added load of not everyone getting why, exactly, things were so bad. More on that later... :(
> 
> 3\. Her 'other stuff' was shipped to Finn and Poe's apartment, where it remains mostly unpacked. It's shoes, her nice-ish clothes, her books, music, computer stuff etc. Kylo kept an armchair that they picked out together when they were in the 'honeymoon' period.
> 
> 4\. Rey is 25, as she's been out of college for a few years. Finn is also 25, Poe is 30.
> 
> 5\. Yep, I did a [Meet Cute.](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MeetCute) Well, I _did_ warn for romance novel tropes...


	2. Shards

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey settles into her new place, meets new people, and begins to adjust to her new life. However, her break with Kylo is not as clean as she thought.

Finn and Poe helped her move the rest of her things on Saturday. There wasn’t much – Kylo had unceremoniously thrown everything into three cardboard boxes and the duffel bag. 

_At least he didn’t put the bath stuff in with my laptop,_ thought Rey, an image of her Elitebook drowning in shampoo flashing through her mind. They stacked the boxes in the kitchen, rolled up their sleeves, and got to work.

It turned out that Poe actually _had_ a power washer. He brought it up on the conditions that, one, she’d let _him_ clean the windows and, two, that she’d help Finn snake the drains. 

“Fair’s fair,” he said, as he and Finn manhandled the thing out of the freight elevator. “This whole damn place is a health hazard. I offer you the benefit of my years of experience of removing filth from strange places.”

“TMI, Dameron,” said Rey, following close behind with a mop and bucket (the latter the size of a washing machine), borrowed from the paint locker in the basement. Poe smirked.

“Seriously, you’d never believe the stuff I’ve found in cars,” he said. “One time I found this four-inch-high plastic Goofy jammed in the gear box. ’86 Volvo station wagon. I guess they had resourceful kids.”

"Goofy, again?" said Finn. "If I had a nickel for every time I heard that story..."

Rey smiled, and made a mental note to tell Finn and Poe how much she loved them. Repeatedly.

"This way guys," she said. "This won't take long." 

 

####

 

Three hours later, Rey was very, very glad she’d lit off the bug bombs the previous night. The bottom of the tub was coated in dead spiders, there was a pile of dead - _thank God_ \- centipedes under the bathroom sink, and the cluster of unidentifiable eggs under the loose tiles near the toilet looked as though they had recently _hatched._

_Hopefully it got_ that _too, whatever it is,_ thought Rey, plunking down on the floor outside the bathroom door. She was exhausted. Her t-shirt was soaked with sweat – the giant fan that Finn had borrowed from the building cleaning closet was barely helping - and her ratty pair of jeans was blossoming with bleach stains. 

“Finn, is the ‘fridge working yet?” she yelled over her shoulder. Finn had the most HVAC experience between the three of them, and, having done his best with the plumbing – everything flushed, and the drains were much faster – had decided to give the old refrigerator a go. 

Rey pursed her lips. Refrigeration was one of the blind spots in her practical engineering skill set. For electrical anything and engines, she was your go-to girl, but ‘reefers’ were another story. 

“Nothing yet!” Finn growled, glaring at the mess of pipes and wires in the back. “I think the coolant tank might be busted.”

“What kind of coolant?” Poe yelled, turning off the power washer and removing his safety glasses and face mask. 

“R-12,” said Finn.

“Well, shit,” said Poe. “You can’t even buy that anymore.”

"Lucky I brought ice," said Rey.

It was an old trick that Rey’s Mom had used when their power got turned off. A dead freezer lined with bags or blocks of ice could keep food fresh for days. Rey was planning to spend the night and, knowing that the appliances were of questionable reliability, had planned ahead, picking up 10 pounds of ice chips at the grocery store as well as milk, eggs, water, and an assortment of protein bars. She would do a major shop later.

“Good call,” said Poe. He set down the washer and surveyed his work. “I think that _this_ is about as good as it’s going to get.”

“Nice job,” said Rey, smiling.

It really was. Underneath who knows how many layers of peeling paint, the wood was old, but quite strong. The glass was clear, if scuffed and rather delicate in spots. Poe had patched the larger holes with plaster sealant and cracked the windows open, letting in air and the sound and smells of the city. Wind whistled through the half-abandoned buildings. Sirens sounded in the distance. Someone a few floors up was frying chicken. Pop music blared from somewhere on the street below. The creaks and aches of old wood and steel surrounded them.

Rey grabbed two bottles of water and joined Poe at the window.

“Hell of a view,” he said. 

“Say it,” she said, smiling faintly as she passed him a bottle. Poe smiled and nudged her shoulder.

“You did good,” he said. "Welcome home."

 

####

 

Rey ordered pizza when the sun was low and the apartment smelled more like bleach than bird droppings. Finn and Poe sat on Rey’s air mattress and helped her unpack. They had brought a couple of bookcases that they’d found at a thrift store. They were part of a set, which included a chest of drawers. They were planning to bring it all in later, but for now the bookcases added a touch of ‘Rey’ to the place. It made the move seem real.

 _This is really happening,_ she thought. _I’m home. This is my home._

It still felt strange. 

“We’ll have to get the rest of your books later,” said Finn, digging through the second box after a distressing lack of Rey’s favorites emerged. Rey clenched her jaw. 

“Well, now I know for certain that leaving was one of the smartest things I’ve ever done,” she said, after digging a smashed perfume bottle out of the remains of her favorite shampoo. “Have you guys seen my iPod anywhere? It should still be on the armband.”

Poe shook his head.

“I can’t find your running shoes either,” he said. 

“What the hell would he have even done with those?” grumbled Finn. 

“They’re probably on eBay,” said Rey. “You’d be surprised what you can get for Asics in ‘Good, Used Condition’.”

“What, $50? Hardly seems worth it.”

“Maybe if it was in a lot. That’d explain where all the fun underwear is,” said Rey. Surprisingly, the words held more _anger_ than pain. A vast improvement, in her opinion. “Or he just kept it.”

“Yuck,” said Poe. “Wouldn’t put it past him. Want me to check eBay? I know his account name.” Rey shook her head.

“No,” she said. “I think – I just need a clean slate, you know? Except for my books,” she said quickly, seeing Poe’s frown. “He doesn’t get those.”

“Absolutely not,” said Finn.

“Ok,” said Rey, taking a deep breath. “One more box to go.”

It was the only one she hadn’t opened. It was rather dense and quite heavy, and for the life of her she had no idea what might be in it. 

She pushed down the flutter in her chest - _It’s over now, you’re out_ \- and cut through the packing tape. 

“Rey, I found your iPod!” said Finn, still up to his elbows in one of the larger boxes.

No response.

“Rey?”

She couldn’t quite stifle her sob.

Finn crawled over to where Rey was crumpled across the box. Her shoulders shook as she clutched a smashed picture frame to her chest. Slowly Finn drew her arms away.

Finn recognized it immediately. Rey and Kylo were in each other’s arms, standing in the middle of a field, awash in sunshine and green beauty. They were wrapped up in the same blanket, gazing into each other’s eyes, laughing as the wind tugged at their hair, tried to sweep them away. The way Rey was clinging to Kylo, it looked as though he was the only thing keeping her on the ground. 

Poe saw Finn’s expression and crept over, getting a good look in the box in the process. It was half full of broken glass and the splintered remains of picture frames, some still containing photographs of various phases in Rey and Kylo’s relationship. The other half was nothing but shredded paper and slashed, stained strips of cardboard and leather – All that was left of Rey’s missing books. 

_“Fuck,”_ said Poe, his voice shaking. 

Finn swallowed, words failing him. 

“Hold on,” he said. He grabbed one of Rey’s old blankets and wrapped it around her shoulders. 

They sat with her until the shaking stopped.

 

####

 

Rey insisted on spending the night alone. She didn’t quite have the words to explain – she only knew that it was important. Finn and Poe eventually accepted it and helped her dig out what she'd need for the night.

They still made her promise to call in the morning. 

After they left she shuffled through her evening routine. Take a shower. Set the alarm. Set out her workout clothes. _No coffee machine…I’ll get some after my ru – oh -_

Kylo had her shoes. Or he’d thrown them out, or sold them. 

_Shit, not again…_ Rey gripped the sink as a wave of hurt swept through her. She glared at the pale, blotchy face in the bathroom mirror. 

_I’m going anyway._

 

####

 

Her night was surprisingly restful. It was an old building, so the night was full of wind moaning in empty spaces, groaning boards and the low thump (and sometimes screech) of water in old pipes, but it didn’t bother her. 

Maybe because it was so different.

Kylo’s apartment had been silent. The insulation and soundproofing was top-of-the line – usually the only noise was the central air conditioning, or the muzak playing in the plush hallways. Or when she slid open the slider to get some fresh air. Or clattered a few pans while making dinner. Or turned a page while reading.

Or spoke.

_It’s over._

Rey turned over on her side and curled around her pillow. The old walls rocked her to sleep.

 

####

 

At six-thirty in the morning, three blocks away from her building, Rey began to regret her decision. Almost. 

_I could have at least worn my_ walking _shoes…_

She had woken up at 6, stretched, thrown on her workout clothes, chugged some water, and headed out for a run. In her oldest pair of ballet flats. 

She’d reasoned that anything she wore in this weather would be destroyed beyond question. And, well, she was making a point.

_Fuck you Kylo._

So she wore her thickest pair of workout socks, threw on a windbreaker, and headed out.

Of course it started raining fifteen minutes later. 

One car-eating mud-filled pothole later she gave her shoes up for a total loss and turned around.

 _Thank God there’s no one around,_ she thought. _Well, it’s before 7 on a Sunday._ A shoeless girl in a reflective yellow jacket, running alone on the sidewalk, swearing a blue streak and carrying a pair of flats would have definitely attracted attention. Of course, it was only a matter of time. She was about ten minutes away (it might as well have been 30, seeing as she couldn’t feel her feet), when she heard a bicycle coming up behind her.

She tensed up as it slowed, and braced herself to run. 

“Hey, are you ok? ...Rey? Is that you?”

“Oh God – Hi...” she said. 

“What happened?” asked Luke, his voice sharp with concern.

“Nothing,” said Rey, keeping her voice as level as she could. “I just got caught in the rain.” 

“Ok,” said Luke, cocking an eyebrow. He pursed his lips, thinking. They both jumped as thunder and lightning cracked almost simultaneously.

“That’s almost on top of us,” he said. “Want a lift?”

“…What?”

“A lift,” he said. “You can ride up here.” He tapped the handlebars. “Or here,” he said, pointing at the crossbar between the seat and said handlebars. “Maybe that’s a better idea,” he mused. “It’s a bit more stable…”

Rey swallowed. But then the storm was on top of them. She put her shoes back on, braced herself and stepped up.

“How do I - ?” 

“Sit sideways, like this…” He maneuvered her so that she was sitting in front of him on the frame. 

“Oh geez…” The bike wobbled as she lifted her feet off the ground. 

“There you go,” said Luke. He reached for the handlebars. “Ready?”

“Yeah,” she said, her breath catching. She was bracketed between his arms, and all but leaning against his chest. _It’s like riding sidesaddle on a horse,_ she thought suddenly. “Eh, please don’t drop me?”

“I won’t,” he said, and kicked off from the curb. 

Rey yelped and grabbed his jacket as they lurched forward. 

“Sorry!” she said. But she couldn’t let go. 

“It’s ok,” he said in her ear. “It’s all balance.” Rey gulped and leaned a bit further back and – 

\-- He was right. Rey hadn’t ridden a bicycle in ages. _I guess it’s true that you never forget._ Her heart slowed into a gentle thump as she sank into the bob and weave of the ride. It was…different, riding like this. When she biked solo, she knew how to compensate when she was about to hit a rock, or make a wrong turn. Here, she had to be aware of the warm weight at her back, to feel the shifts and jolts as they moved, the subtle changes in angle and speed. It wasn’t like riding on the back of a motorcycle. She wasn’t exactly a passenger. 

It got easier when Rey settled her arm more firmly around his waist. Slowly, she relaxed as her senses grew attuned to the subtle shifts of muscle and breath.

Rey felt him doing the same. 

“Can we go faster?” she asked.

Luke laughed, and shifted gears. 

 

####

 

They took the freight elevator when Rey turned down Luke’s offer to carry her up the stairs. Her feet weren’t frozen, after all. She _did_ take his arm in the hallway, grinning like a loon the whole way.

He gave her the name of a good athletic store - 'Roadrunner' - after she explained part of the reason for her lack of appropriate footwear. He didn’t press her for the rest – Her _’I just had to go run’_ was apparently enough. They were arguing the pros and cons of trail versus city running when they made it to their end of the hall. 

“Luke…Thanks,” said Rey, jangling her keys awkwardly. “Really. You were --” 

“Anytime,” he said. He took a deep breath. “Rey, do you – “

Her phone went off inside her apartment. _Finn…_

“I’m sorry, I _really_ have to take this,” she said. “That’s Finn - he's a friend – I promised I’d call this morning.” 

“No worries,” said Luke. “If you ever need anything…” 

“You too,” said Rey. “I’ll be - “ The phone rang insistently. 

“Thank you!” she said, and backed into her apartment. She threw her socks into the living room as she picked up the phone. “Finn! I’m sorry, I didn’t call yet because it’s Sunday and you guys usually sleep in until – Finn?”

“Rey, have you got internet yet?”

“Yes…”

“Pull up your email, I’m sending you something.” Rey plunked down on the floor and opened her laptop, frowning.

“What’s up, Finn?”

“I wanted you to hear this from us. Ok, there.” Rey’s email _pinged._

She opened the attachment. 

“Rey?”

“Yeah, I’m here Finn. This is for real?”

“Yeah. I just found out,” he said grimly. “I guess they wanted to break the news over the weekend.”

Rey swallowed. 

Finn had sent her a press release from his employer, First Order Incorporated. They had bought UIC, and would be assuming control Monday. There would be ‘personnel redistribution’, and ‘corporate restructuring’. Read: layoffs. 

Rey was now, for all intents and purposes, working for the First Order.

And the head of the ‘restructuring initiative’? 

Kylo Ren.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Yes, it's a raging cliche, but I think that two people riding the same bicycle is one of the most romantic things _ever._ EVER, I say!
> 
> 2\. So is bumping into each other and getting all snuggly in the rain. 
> 
> 3\. Kylo needs a punch in the face. Possibly several. 
> 
> 4\. And yeah, people sometimes do semi-illogical things when they're going through some major shit, like Rey is. And anyone who's ever felt the need to 'just go run' definitely _would_ 'get it'. ;_;
> 
> 4/9/16 EDIT: I took out the scene where Finn and Poe and Rey run into Luke when they're moving her in. It just didn't seem to fit...#perfectionism and #pacing


	3. No Replacements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey gets a running buddy and deals with the collision of her professional and private lives. Finn is in the same boat. Both of them repress the urge to slug Kylo, who we meet for the first time (in this fic).
> 
> In other words, this is a _LONG_ chapter. Also, be warned that there is a brief description of past emotional abuse in here, because I get into what Rey and Kylo's relationship was like. There is no physical abuse or rape (and there won't be in this fic), but the rating has been raised to M.

The rest of the day was a blur. Rey signed off, took a shower, grabbed her purse, and went to Wal-Mart. She focused on the essentials. Coffee machine. Drinking glasses, utensils, and a set of dishes. Plastic and cloth ‘storage solutions’. _Temporary, I’ll hit up a thrift store next weekend._ Towels. Tampons. A pillow and bedding. Bottled water. Ground hamburger and rice. Frozen vegetables. Oatmeal. 

It was like she was back in college. She had that strange sense of focus, that tunnel vision that came from living on a shoestring budget, grades and tests and _this is a stepping stone, you’ll be out soon_ dominating her mind. 

Rey knew herself well enough to see that she was entering into ‘survival mode.’ And if Monday turned out the way she suspected it would, she’d need it. 

But there were some things that she just couldn’t scrimp on. She dropped off her purchases - _Bless you, freight elevator!_ \- and headed to Roadrunner. 

 

####

 

The athletics store had definitely earned Luke’s recommendation. _I guess I owe him another thank you,_ she thought, exiting with two pairs of shoes (running and cross-training), socks, three sports bras, and two sets of wicking shirts and shorts. _I hope he’s home when I get back._

Somehow, Rey couldn’t control her grin. Warm rain pattered on the trunk of her car as she loaded it up. _I could run in this, no problem. Maybe bike, too..._

She headed off to meet Finn. They were going to kick Monday in the ass.

 

####

 

They picked a neutral spot – Niima Café. The cozy book-and-coffee shop was right off the Cove, had a spectacular view, and did most of its business in the summer. Tourists came to Jakku for gentle sailing under bright summer skies, and the rainbow of summer life in the famous tide pools and caves, not the roaring winter wind, ice storms, and fog. Besides, it was dangerous in the winter. The locals swore that the place _changed_ in the winter. Rey had never heard of anyone taking their boat out after Labor Day. The wind and waves echoed strangely in the jagged teeth of the Cove, and hundreds of ships had been dashed to pieces on the reef. 

So she and Finn had the place to themselves, except for a bored barista. They ordered coffee and started outlining contingency plans.

“I just didn’t want to talk about this at home,” Finn said quietly. “I don’t want this bullshit anywhere near - ”

“Yeah ‘don’t bring it home’,” said Rey. 

“Understatement,” said Finn. He had graduated from business school with high honors and always threw everything he had into his work. But that was it – Work was _work,_ and he fought had to keep it in perspective. Rey always said that his problem was that he was the only junior exec in his department with a soul.

His life with Poe _was_ his life, as far as he was concerned, his family and friends separate from his livelihood. And with one swoop of a pen, Kylo had blasted the wall apart. Worse, Finn was on the team that was about to descend on UIC. Granted, he was far below Kylo in the FO hierarchy, but – 

“I don’t know if I can do it, Rey,” he said, gripping his coffee mug so hard his knuckles turned white. “I’ll be in meetings all day tomorrow with that bastard.”

“Finn – “

“And all I can see now is what he did to you.” Rey laid her hand over his and gripped it hard.

“I’ll be there too,” she said quietly. “This is just temporary – we’ll get through this.”

 _I need this job. I_ will _get through this._

“I should have gotten out the second they hired him.”

“He wasn’t even in your department,” said Rey firmly. “You barely saw him. This was – No one was expecting this.”

“I mean, I knew that Acquisitions was negotiating with someone,” he said. “But UIC? It doesn’t even make any _sense._ You’re a consulting firm, for fuck’s sake! FO keeps it in-house.”

A terrible suspicion filled Rey’s mind.

“Finn,” she asked slowly. “Do you know when the negotiations started?” 

“About a month ago,” said Finn. His eyes grew round as he connected the dots. “No. No, that can’t be it.”

“What if it is?” Rey pulled her hand away. She gripped her purse under the table, her gut knotting with shock and anger. 

“If it is, I walk,” he said. “And you need to - to consider your options.”

 _“What_ options?” she said. “Around here, it’s UIC and FO, and I haven’t got the cash to move.”

_My life is here. My -_

“We’ll make it,” growled Finn. “No matter what.”

Rey smiled grimly. 

"Yes, we will." 

 

####

 

Two cups of coffee and three muffins later, Rey and Finn had a plan. Rey’s little corner of UIC was definitely in for a shock (the engineers were usually the last to find out about corporate _anything_ ). Her boss would be scrambling to arrange everyone’s schedules to accommodate the incoming deluge of meetings, so she would have a window of opportunity to ‘adjust’ said schedules. 

Rey smirked at the irony. UIC didn’t have the budget of any sort of administrative assistants, so most of the engineers did their own scheduling. She’d grab the personnel lists, cross-reference it against the FO lists, and maneuver everyone’s availability so that the UIC Finance Team was only available at the same time as Corporate, and both in tiny conference rooms. The FO delegation would be forced to split into Accounts, Finance, and Corporate. Finn would do the same on his end. They would stay in contact via text message on their non-work phones.

So if all went according to plan, neither she nor Finn would see much of Kylo. If he went out of his way to change that, they’d know something was up. 

Normally Rey did not dodge her problems. This, however, was _survival._ As her superior, Kylo had both her and Finn up against the wall. For now.

“Consider it recon,” she said. 

“It’ll keep me from knocking his teeth out for a week, at least,” said Finn. 

“You and me both,” said Rey. She smiled wryly. “Who knows? Maybe he’ll keep it professional.”

“If he does, I’m mailing Satan some ice skates.”

Rey snorted. 

“If he does, I’ll buy them.”

They paid the bill and started for the door.

“Hang on,” said Finn. He tugged her gently towards the bookshelves.

“Finn…”

“My treat,” he said, walking over to the new releases. 

“I don’t want replacements,” she said, her temper flaring. “Ok, that came out wrong. I just – “ Finn smiled sadly and picked up something from the 'local authors' table. 

“How about this – You get something for me. We can trade if we both hate each other’s picks.” Rey snorted. “Hey, I have an advantage,” said Finn. “You’ll read just about _anything._ And if you like it, you keep it.” 

“All right,” she said. “Surprise me.”

 

####

 

They swapped books outside. Rey wound up with an H.P. Lovecraft anthology – Finn had bought it on the spot when he realized that she’d never read _The Call of Cthulhu,_ and had never used the word ‘Cyclopean’ before. Rey had grabbed something off of the bestseller display. She reasoned that Finn had never read a mystery that he didn’t like, as long as the writing was decent, and the chapter she peeked at seemed to fit the bill. It was also rather…evocative. The page in question was something that she would normally only read in private, thank you very much. Unexpectedly well written, too. The summary hinted at a bit of a horror element…She handed it to Finn somewhat reluctantly, rolling her eyes at his smug grin.

Sometimes she thought he knew her a bit _too_ well. 

 

####

 

Rey paced around her kitchen, trying not to think about why she was trying not to think about Luke Skywalker. 

_For the love of God, Rey, it’s just a thank you!_

She’d put away her new purchases, moved the bookcases and air mattress around twice, and updated her Windows software. She was out of excuses.

_Wait until tomorrow._

But she couldn’t. Tomorrow could very well mark the end of the relative peace she’d found since she’d left Kylo. In light of the news of the takeover, her first day in the apartment felt…stolen. Or like a gift that was delivered to the wrong address. 

And it was entirely due to twenty minutes on a bicycle with a - 

_With a good -_

Rey leaned against her door, hugging herself, letting her thoughts flow back to the morning, to rain spattering her face, her feet freezing in soggy socks, Luke’s windbreaker crinkling between her fingers, her head tucked into his shoulder, laughing as they hit yet another puddle and she had an excuse to press _closer._

_I’m not supposed to have that._

Rey wanted to hold onto the day as long as she could. So she walked across the hall and knocked.

After the longest minute of her life, and hearing nothing but creaking floorboards, she went back into her apartment and got ready for bed, shaking off the pang of mingled disappointment and relief. 

 

####

 

The day went more or less as she had expected. She met up with her co-workers in the technical lead’s office at 7:30, like always, and broke the news. The ensuing 'discussion' spilled over into the surrounding cubicles and dispensed with the need for the usual gallon of coffee (temporarily, anyway). Only a few people had been aware of the impending ‘management transition,’ so everyone switched into overdrive trying to find out what the hell was going on. As planned, she jumped into the scheduling battle. Finn texted her during her coffee break, informing her that ‘Operation FYK (Fuck You Kylo) is a go.’

Rey managed to jump from cubicle to cubicle with her laptop – God bless wireless internet – when she wasn’t in meetings. 

_This is ridiculous._

Here she was, 25 years old, dodging her ex like a 16-year-old in the high school library stacks.

Rey clenched her teeth and lost herself in her work. She’d stick with the plan; a confrontation would almost certainly get her fired. 

And it was _her_ job. Her life. He had no right to -

_Survive, Rey._

She wasn’t going to let that asshole win. Not this time. 

 

####

 

Things went well until noon. She’d brought her own, as always, but her co-workers dragged her away from her usual ‘working lunch’ at her desk into the unofficial ‘engineer corner’ of the cafeteria. Max - the tech lead for her section - bought several gallons of coffee, pulled out his laptop, and dragged everyone into a strategy huddle that would have put a pro football team to shame. There had been rounds of layoffs before, but with the way FO did business everyone, even those who’d been there for decades, was worried. They had kids in college, roofs that needed repairing, student loans, and, frankly, just the groceries. _Everyone_ was inches from panic, but it was the kind of panic that slashed everything else away. Rey's team zeroed in on the problem like a heat-seeking missile. 

So their little group was the last to notice when silence enveloped the cafeteria. 

Kylo appeared right behind her, of course, accompanied by the UIC Engineering department head. Six impeccably dressed FO executives trailed behind them, looking around the cafeteria with varying degrees of disgust. 

_Those must be the Knights,_ Rey thought. Kylo Ren's executive squad had earned that nickname from their ruthless methods for 'promoting efficiency', according to Finn. 

Who, thankfully, was nowhere to be seen. Rey held herself rigidly in her seat, hands folded in her lap, eyes forward, jaw clenched. She hoped she looked more composed than she felt.

Kylo stepped forward and grasped the back of Rey’s chair, his knuckles just brushing her shoulders. She barely managed to stop the shudder that ran through her.

He was so close she could feel his heat emanating through his expensive black suit. And she was at just the right height to – Rey’s fingernails bit into her palms. 

“I apologize for the short notice,” he said coolly, addressing the technical lead. “But due to time constraints, tomorrow’s meeting has been rescheduled to…” His eyes flicked to the clock on the wall. “4 PM.”

“All right,” said her superior. “Thank you for the _update,”_ he said stiffly. 

“I’ll leave you to your lunch,” said Kylo. He caught Rey’s eyes and stepped ever so slightly closer, mouth quirking up into a smirk. Rey’s mouth went dry as his knuckles brushed against her shoulder blade. “Room 4B,” he said, turned on his heel, and left. The Engineering director cast a quick, apologetic look at the table and followed. 

The corner of the cafeteria filled up with bewildered muttering. 

“Well, crap…”

“What the hell was that?”

“What _meeting?”_

Rey’s boss shook his head, his eyes narrowing.

“Engineering’s Corporate branch has been talking one-on-one with each team. I guess FO is invited to ours. And, no, I haven’t heard anything new. This is just a talk, that’s all…” Max trailed off, obviously disturbed. Then his eyes flicked to Rey.

“Rey…Are you ok?” The table quieted as they all took in Rey’s pale face and rigid shoulders.

“I’m fine,” she said, jumping to her feet. “I’ll see you guys at the meeting. Thank you for the coffee.” She hurried back to her cubicle, dropped off her laptop, and locked herself in a stall in the ladies’ room until she could breathe again.

 

####

 

To Rey’s surprise, Kylo almost completely ignored her. He gave her the same vaguely condescending look as the other engineers, and focused on the presentation. The ensuing hour was spent on workflow, overhead, and available man-hours, and concluded with a cheery infographic of the vast improvement in, well, _everything_ that inevitably resulted from being absorbed by the First Order. 

_I might have to buy those ice skates after all,_ Rey thought as she gathered up her things. 

“Rey?” Max asked. “May I have a moment?”

Rey’s heart dropped into her stomach.

“Sure,” she said, amazed at how level her voice was.

“Kylo Ren would like to speak with you,” he said. “Don’t worry,” he said, holding up his hand, completely misinterpreting her expression. “He just wants a little more detail about your involvement in the Archon Map project, that’s all.” 

Rey nodded dully, suddenly very aware of how few people were in the room.

“It will just be a minute,” said Kylo, looking up from his portfolio. “Please, have a seat.”

She sat.

“All right, then. Good evening, Rey.” The door clicked shut.

And then she was alone with him.

 

####

 

There was a long silence. Kylo leaned back in his chair, watching her from across the conference table. He had removed his sport coat at the beginning of the meeting, and rolled up the sleeves of his button-down shirt. He smiled, dark eyes on her as he slowly, methodically, loosened his tie, and undid the top button on his shirt.

Rey held her computer bag on her lap, folded her hands neatly on the table in front of her, and smiled back. 

_Survive._

Finally, he broke the silence.

“Unkarr Industrial Consultants,” he said. “Have they been keeping you busy?”

“Yes,” said Rey. 

“Clearly,” said Kylo. “Too busy to answer my calls.”

“I changed my number,” she said. Kylo’s mouth twisted with anger. 

“Why?” he hissed, getting slowly to his feet. 

“So this isn’t about Archon Map?” _Crap, he’s between me and the door…_

“It can be,” he said, rounding the table. “I’ve been placed in Engineering Corporate for the duration of the…restructuring. About time,” he said. “There’s a lot of fat to cut. How is life on the street?”

“I’m not on the street,” she snapped. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

“Ach-To Avenue? Close enough,” he said, sitting on the table, close enough to touch. Rey sat up straighter and held her bag firmly in front of her, her face heating up as her heart shifted into overdrive, limbs flooding with adrenaline. “I thought you’d be leeching off what’s-his-name for at least a year,” he said, the words laced with spite. 

“I wasn’t leeching,” she said. 

“Living rent-free is leeching,” he said. “Nothing is free, Rey.” He slid closer. “The usual exchange rate is cash. Or _services._ And before you left…Well. Those were a rough couple of months, weren’t they?” Kylo smiled. “You owe me.” He hiked up the leg closest to Rey, spreading his thighs slightly wider.

The frantic buzz in her ears turned into a screech. Rey pushed her chair away and jumped to her feet. He stepped close, blocking her path.

“Get out of my way,” she said, her voice remarkably steady. Kylo smiled.

“It doesn’t need to be this way,” he said. “Your friend…Frank? Finnick? Whatever. He’s been quite professional about this.”

“Of course he is,” she said. _And you haven’t seen him today, have you?_

“We’re going to be working together,” said Kylo. “There’s no reason we can’t be _civil_ with one another.” His breath was hot on her face. Their eyes locked.

“You’ve only got this conference room until 5,” she said quietly. _The next meeting starts in five minutes, they’ll be breaking down the door in two, he can’t, Rey, he can’t -_

Kylo smirked. He stepped aside. Rey strode to the door as quickly as she could manage without actually running, and then paused, her hand on the doorknob.

“I don’t owe you _shit,”_ she said, and left him.

 

####

 

Somehow Rey made it back to her desk. She texted Finn while she threw her things together, her fingers shaking, telling him that she couldn’t meet up after work - _I have to leave now – yes right now - I’m so sorry - I’ll tell you everything tomorrow._

She was out the door in record time. 

Back in her apartment, Rey pulled off her blouse and slacks, left them in a pile on the floor, and dug an old pair of running shorts and a t-shirt out of her duffel. She wiped off her makeup, tied back her hair and headed out the door. It was time to break in her new shoes. 

She didn’t bother to bring music – her mind was whirring too fast. Her senses needed _dulling,_ not the boost they’d get from her EDM cardio playlist. All she wanted was the rush of distant traffic, the patter of rain on her jacket, and her feet smacking pavement.

It was almost enough to keep the memories away.

 _I should have known,_ she thought. 

But how could she? He’d been charming as _fuck_ when they were dating. _Well, ok, for the first five dates…_ And then she’d slept with him, and he became someone she didn’t recognize. 

Oh, it had started slowly. No one could deny that. But that was when the little things started to slide into their relationship. She’d woken up alone to cold sheets, an empty, jaw-droppingly gorgeous apartment, and the realization that they’d made love in the guest room.

However, there was a note on the marble counter, and cinnamon rolls – her favorite – and a pot of fragrant coffee waiting at the table. Apparently he’d had a meeting, and that it’d be wonderful if she waited for him. 

So Rey waited. She greeted him at the door in nothing but his shirt. Tangled up with him on the couch, flushed and slick with sweat, exhausted and sore from an hour under him, Rey decided that she had imagined the look of surprise on his face when he’d come through the door. He couldn’t have forgotten she was there.

Could he?

The other hints were quiet, wispy things that sounded almost petty when she spoke them out loud. She’d ignored most of them, half on the advice of her mother, half thanks to believing that it was temporary. Demanding where she was if she didn’t answer her phone, or respond to his texts _immediately._ Looking over her shoulder constantly when she was online, even when curled up in bed with him, both of them on their laptops. Shutting her down when she asked him what was wrong – and _what the hell his problem was_ \-- when he didn’t call her for days, and then showed up at her apartment with wine and dinner reservations. Not that they usually made it out the door. 

Rey shuddered and picked up the pace. God, even now…The very worst part was that her heart still skipped a beat when he looked at her, his eyes dark, possessive, _wanting._ That she still flushed when he stood close, even as anger roiled like a storm inside her. Even after she realized what was behind that perfect face. 

_God, I’m a freaking_ Lifetime _movie,_ she thought. _Of course he didn’t change._

She’d left the morning after she spilled wine on the carpet in front of his boss. Snoke had sneered, said something about clumsy women in the kitchen. Kylo laughed and handed her a towel and a bottle of carpet cleaner. She’d gotten on her knees in her Prada dress and heels – his latest apology gift – and cleaned up the stain while his guests stared. 

Rey held her peace after they left. When his insults escalated into rage, she dragged him into the bedroom, knowing that he always passed out after he came. The ensuing activities could only be described as the reason the word ‘fuck’ exists. 

She waited an hour after his breathing slowed, and the sun was starting to peek over the horizon. Then she dug the last remaining pair of jeans that she’d bought for herself out of the back of the closet, and a ratty t-shirt and bra that she’d had since college. A change of underwear and her toothbrush went in her purse. She left the Prada dress in a knot on the floor. 

Finn and Poe had never looked happier to see her.

Kylo had never laid a hand on her. He hadn’t needed to. There were other ways to break a person. 

Rey ran until her muscles burned and her breath was coming in sharp gasps. Broken sidewalks and crumbling asphalt had turned into rough gravel and weeds when she finally slowed. Rey blinked, surprised at herself - she was maybe a mile away from Niima Cove. That meant she’d run at least three miles.

 _I am seriously going to regret this in the morning,_ she thought. _A month on my ass and then this…Stupid…_

Of course she continued on. Soon the gravel and weeds became hard-packed earth, and then she was clambering up rain-slicked rocks, and then standing tall on the top of a cliff, the crash of waves filling the air.

The weather had driven most of the visitors away, but Rey still spotted a few lonely clusters of people down on the rocky beach – either runners, like her, or else climbing the cliffs or exploring the caves. One brave woman in a bright yellow raincoat and rubber boots had set up an easel down near the visitor’s center. A man on a bench a few yards away had a notebook open in his lap, the page half-full. He was staring across the water, his back to her. She watched the sky and stretched, taking deep breaths to center herself, to draw herself back into her body. The burn in her muscles certainly helped with _that._

Rey bounced up and down to keep her muscles warm, looking longingly at the bench. It was big enough to hold several people. _If I sit down it’s going to be hard to get back up. Eh…Screw it…I can cab it back if my legs really cramp up._ She dropped down next to the man with a contented sigh. And then almost jumped out of her skin. She was sitting next to Luke. 

…Who didn’t seem to notice that she was there. He was turned partially away from her and gazing out across the water, his bright eyes fixed on something that only he could see. Vaguely Rey registered her heart speeding up as she took in his profile, his strong, gentle face, the wind rustling in his neat, silvered hair and beard. The _focus…_ It was as though this little slice of world had folded in on itself, that everything was sharper, more _real._ Then he blinked, shook himself a little, and scribbled in his notebook. 

Rey shifted on the bench slightly. She was starting to cool down, and was very much feeling the wind. He turned toward her, and his surprised smile lit up the world. 

“We have to stop meeting like this,” he said. Rey let out a surprised laugh.

“Ah – Yeah,” she sputtered, feeling as though her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth. _Real smooth Rey…_

“Nice weather we’re having, isn’t it?” he said, after a moment. Waves crashed on the teeth of the cove. A few surprised shrieks of locals getting spattered by the freezing water floated up from the beach. 

“It’ll be time for the Polar Bear swim soon,” she said, grinning. 

Every year when ice started to form on the edges of the cove, several dozen brave souls stripped naked and ran out into the water…and quickly back out again. The local news covered it, and if there wasn’t a live feed somewhere on the internet, Rey would eat her new shoes. 

“Ah, so you’re a local then,” said Luke, putting down his pen. Rey nodded.

“All my life. I’ve never done it, though,” she said, shuddering. “Have you?” Luke grinned.

“Oh, _years_ ago,” he said. “On a dare. Mostly so I could say I did it.”

“Are there pictures?” Rey blurted out. Luke cocked an eyebrow at her. “Uhm, I mean – Evidence!” She was sure her blush could have been seen from space.

“Pics or it didn’t happen?” he said wryly. 

“Yup,” she said, another laugh welling up inside. 

“Unfortunately yes,” he said. “Wedge kept them in case he ever needed to blackmail me. Old friend,” he said, answering Rey’s unspoken question. 

“So…What are you writing?” Rey asked, after a comfortable silence. “Sorry,” she said quickly. “You don’t have to say.” Luke shook his head.

“No, don’t worry. I’m taking notes for a new book,” he said. “It’s quite inspiring out here. Very…wild.”

“So you’re a writer?” Rey asked, feeling yet another blush coming on. Luke nodded. “What kind?”

“Fiction, mostly,” he said. “A few different genres. This one is…” He gestured vaguely at his notebook, and at the air around them. “Different.”

“Do you come out here a lot?” she asked. “To write, I mean.”

“Yes,” he said. “Sometimes just to be out here. It’s beautiful. Especially like this. You?”

“Not really,” she said. “I just moved out here, you know. I was further into the city before.” 

She looked away. _Don’t think of it._

“Well,” said Luke, sensing her discomfort. “There’s quite a lot to see out here. And some excellent places to run. And bike,” he said, smiling. 

“Oh!” she said suddenly. “I’ve been meaning to thank you for recommending the Roadrunner.” She pointed at her shoes, smiling akwardly. “They’re great, seriously.”

“I’m kind of a frequent customer,” he said, grinning. “And it’s getting late. Are you headed back soon?” he asked, oddly carefully. Rey nodded.

“Yeah,” she said. “I have to get up early. Hey, where’s your bike?”

“I ran here,” said Luke, slipping his notebook into his windbreaker. “Frequent Roadrunner customer, remember? Clears my head.”

“Me too,” said Rey. “I…” She swallowed. The words came out anyway. “I really needed it today.”

Luke smiled sadly, blue eyes catching hers. 

“I know the feeling,” he said quietly. He looked across the water, brow creased in thought. 

“You know,” said Luke. “It’s getting dark. Can I walk you home?”

“Run me home?”

“Ok, _run_ you home…”

“Yes. Thank you. I don’t really know this neighborhood that well. I was kind of in the zone on the way here, so…” Luke nodded, and smiled _that smile._

“Great,” he said, and offered her a hand up. She took it without thinking. 

“So I usually go running after work,” she said, a little while later, when she was too tired to be nervous. “I don’t really know the area.”

“I usually head out here around 4 or 5,” said Luke, keeping his eyes carefully forward. “Would you like some company?”

“Are you planning to go easy on me?”

“I’m more worried about you leaving _me_ in the dust.”

 _Not likely,_ Rey thought. They were in the third mile, and Luke had plenty of wind left.

“Then you’re on.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. I _did_ warn for emotional abuse. *shudders* This chapter freaks _me_ out in places. *cocks shotgun* *looks around for Kylo*
> 
> 2\. Rey and Finn are going to stick it out at work for the time being because 1) There aren't a hell of a whole lot of jobs out there and 2) that asshole doesn't get the satisfaction of chasing them away. This involves occasional strategic retreats, and _documenting harassment._ Oh yes. 
> 
> 3\. I'm resisting the urge to write in a giant fist-fight. Because guess who needs a punch in the face??? >:(
> 
> 4\. ...But then again, I AM playing with tropes, here. 
> 
> 5\. Yep, Finn is now reading one of Luke's books. It's under a pen name, hence Rey's lack of reaction. Also, there will be more Luke from here on out. YAY!
> 
> 6\. I'm also cleaning this one up a bit, because I'm kind of a perfectionist :P


	4. Time Zones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey and Luke develop an evening routine, but the First Order's business activities complicate matters. They decide to make it up later. Finn and Poe eat fast food before running, meet Luke, and start Plotting immediately. Rey realizes something important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time passes in this one, so once again, here is a long-ass chapter :O  
> Also, be warned that I wrote about 2/3 of this while watching 'Message in a Bottle'. Especially keep this in mind for the end part. Is it possible to OD on Nicholas Sparks?

The bulk of the administrative work was finished by Friday, at least from Rey’s perspective – the major impact on her team was ‘priority redistribution’ and, worse, budget cuts. Thankfully she had no say in the matter, which meant that she encountered most of the First Order bullshit second-hand. 

“I feel bad for Max,” she told Finn over coffee and a muffin in the back of the cafeteria, a week after Kylo had confronted her. “My rank’s so low that they just don’t need me for management stuff. He has the Knights breathing down his neck every single day.” 

She and Finn kept in contact via text message and the occasional coffee break. In the wake of the conference room incident – after Poe had had to practically lock him in their apartment to stop him from going after Kylo – Finn had made a point of being seen in her part of the building whenever he had a free moment. He also told her to keep her staff in her car. Poe had an uncle in Corrections that had gotten his hands on three police-grade expandable batons, and had all but thrown a 26’’ model at Rey when he found out that she was moving to the Industrial district.

“You’re smaller than these assholes,” he’d said, jerking his thumb at Finn and Poe. “You know, ‘with a big enough stick you can throw the world up an ass.’ Aristotle.”

“That’s…Not exactly it,” said Finn. 

“So you need a bigger stick,” said the prison guard. “I would not recommend getting within arm’s reach. You, however…” He nodded at his nephew’s boyfriend. Finn had been training at his boxing ring long before he and Poe got together. “Feel free to break a few noses. I’d say get a handgun, but it takes months to get a concealed carry permit.” He frowned, looking suddenly awkward. “Look, I know what this sounds like, and you’re tough as nails, but I really don’t like the idea of _anyone_ living alone out there, much less Poe’s gir – I mean, _a friend who is a girl.”_

“I’m not,” said Rey without thinking. “I mean, I have my own place, but the building’s hardly _empty,_ it’s safe, there are a lot of people around, and…”

“Rey…Are you _blushing?”_ asked Poe, leaning in and crossing his arms, a grin spreading slowly across his face.

“No!” said Rey, turning even redder.

“She’s _totally_ blushing,” said Finn.

“Screw you!” said Rey, most definitely _not_ thinking about bicycles and rain. “How do I use this thing?”

Rey always had learned fast. She hated to admit it, but gripping two feet of steel pain in the palm of her hand felt very, very good. Especially after a few practice swings on a vaguely human-shaped dummy in Mr. Cameron’s gym. She was pretty sure that it’s long black wig was all Finn’s fault.

“He hasn’t bothered me,” said Rey. “Really. I’m probably beneath his notice, now.” 

_Being four paygrades under someone will do that,_ she thought. 

“Hardly,” said Finn grimly. “I know him.” 

“Well, remember that we’ve got your back,” said Poe. “And you know you’re welcome anytime. That couch has been awfully cold lately – BB still won’t sit in your spot.” The yellow lab’s ears perked up at her name, lifting her head from Rey’s lap, tail thumping on Finn and Poe’s couch.

“You just don’t want to take her out in the morning,” said Rey, warmth spreading through her chest. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. She looked away before they could fall. “I love you guys…”

Finn hauled her into a hug. BB jumped across the gap and licked her face, gazing at her with soulful brown eyes. It wasn’t the biggest couch, but there always seemed to be room for three friends and a dog.

 

*

 

But Rey wasn’t alone in the Industrial District. Every day after work she’d knock on Luke’s door in running gear, keys around her neck, and they’d head out in the general direction of the Cove. Three days after their conversation on the bench, Rey caught herself counting down the minutes to quitting time. Some days she swore the clock moved backwards, the digital readout on her computer included.

Other days she had to hurry. Luke warned her that jogging on Ach-To Ave after 8 at night was not the best idea whether she was on her own or not, so the best time to leave was at 4:30 or 5. Not that she’d needed the warning…The latest they’d gone out was 7, and even then they pushed it to get back before the nightlife really started up. She’d learned quite a few ‘shortcuts’ – two involved climbing chain-link fences – since they’d started running together after she got home from work. ‘Beating the shadows’ became a thing.

Luke, once she got him talking, was a bottomless pit of information. He remembered Jakku City before the economy went to Hell. Strangely, it seemed that the ‘other Jakku,’ as she was coming to call it, was not quite as gone as she’d thought. Most of the old families were still here, just either in dramatically reduced circumstances, or had migrated to the downtown. 

Rey suspected that Luke’s was among the latter. She hadn’t pressed – family was something that _hurt._

 _One more thing I never discussed with Kylo._ She’d never even met his parents, and his expression whenever she came even a little close to the subject had made her shrink deep inside herself, and walk on eggshells for hours afterwards. 

Yet something on the edge of her mind wanted to ask Luke. On their first day out, while guzzling water on their bench overlooking Niima Cove, she asked him when he started writing. He shut down immediately, and his eyes lost their sparkle. Briefly, a shiver of apprehension hit her. _When Kylo didn’t talk…_ But she steeled herself and looked again. Sadness hovered on the corners of his distant gaze.

Not anger.

She’d dropped the subject because she didn’t want him to hurt.

She wasn’t afraid to speak. It was...different.

Instead she’d switched to another topic, her stomach leaping when he came alive again. They ran back soon after that, slower this time, Rey turning a thought over and over in her head: she wanted to know him. 

The more she listened, the more she began to understand why a successful writer was living in the Industrial District. There was life here. It was a home. Soon Rey learned more about his neighborhood than she’d ever thought possible.

There was a library between the Overlook Hotel (the very, very haunted, very _dangerous_ Overlook Hotel) and the Chuck-E-Cheese. 

She should give the decrepit video store (yes, a real live video store, even if it was about 90% porn, and he just knew that second-hand, thank you very much) around the corner a wide berth unless she were looking for a dealer – Luke had called the cops on the place several times, with very few results.

Avoid the power plant. And everything north of Korriban Street, which had apparently been Bad News even before the economy tanked.

And, of course… _Don’t go in the water after August 15._

She’d laughed at that one.

“I grew up here, remember?” she’d said, darting in front of him and running backwards down the street, so he’d be sure to catch her smirk. “And what about the Polar Bear – “

“Doesn’t count…Look, a purple horse!” 

“Nice try Skywalker,” she said, laughing, throwing out her arms to block him from taking the lead. “I can keep this up for _miles.”_

And sometimes they said nothing at all. Luke seemed to sense when Rey was an almost literal mess in the wake of the day. Those runs were hard and fast, and usually ended with Rey flat on the floor of her apartment, wishing that she could shower while asleep, her mind blissfully quiet.

The second week Rey began taking note of when they left and when they got back. And if she kept an eye on her pace watch, and maybe slowed down a little bit after the halfway mark so they were out for an hour instead of 45 minutes…Well, so what? She loved running. She loved stretching her legs after a long day sitting in her cubicle, and talking about things that didn’t involve parts ordering and spreadsheets and risk calculations. It was a… _thing_ that she did. With a friend. Everyone had things that they did with friends, right?

 _Friends get introduced to other friends,_ thought Rey wryly after an especially vigorous run. For some reason, the thought of Luke meeting Finn and Poe made her very, very nervous. She really wanted to introduce them, though.

It seemed right.

 

*

 

Rey’s section didn’t lose any people, thank the Lord – most of her team was made up of men who had been working for UIC for decades, and, in several cases, were some of the only people currently in existence who knew how some of UIC’s older (but still profitable) products worked. Well, _really_ worked. Rey had acquired the basics since she’d been hired, but you just couldn’t absorb 30 years of legacy knowledge in 3 years as a junior engineer. She remembered when their previous section manager had retired – it had been like one of the system supercomputers had walked out the door. 

A little over a month after the First Order bought UIC, Rey and two other junior engineers crowded around the phone in Max’s office – really a slightly larger cubicle with high walls and a door.

 _At least I’ve still got my cubicle,_ she thought. Mikey, one of the relatively new software engineers, had been exiled to one of the satellite desks where employees on travel sat when they needed a temporary workspace. Scheduling conference rooms had become nearly impossible for anyone not working on a First Order priority, so Rey and the technical leads were crammed elbow to elbow around a schematics-covered table, so close to Max’s desk that any newcomers would have to sit on it to fit. She winced as she flexed her shoulders, her back pressed against an overflowing file cabinet. 

Today’s conference call was with an overseas supplier who was reluctant to part with technical information on the best of days. The supplier’s relationship with UIC had only gotten worse since the acquisition, but they were the last company that actually made what Rey’s team needed.  
Which was why they were on the line at 7:30 at night. 

_Stupid time zones,_ Rey thought. _Thank God it’s Friday._ After a month of administrative chaos, the hints of peace had gone to hell as the consequences of UIC’s change in management began to ripple across the country and beyond. The situation had escalated enough to prompt daily calls to the supplier. Rey hadn’t gotten home before 9 in a week. She shifted uncomfortably, her joints stiff and tingling from sitting still for so long. She squinted at her keyboard and stifled a yawn. 

_God, my energy is already tanking…_ She hadn’t gone running since Sunday, and after 5 straight days of late nights and no Luke, Rey had been sinking rapidly into running withdrawal. It felt like she hadn’t spoken to him for _weeks._

Her face burned as, for the millionth time, she remembered how she’d dealt with standing him up the first time it happened. 

She’d all but crawled out of work on Monday night, her brain possessing what was roughly the coherency of a bowl of lukewarm spaghetti that hadn’t been drained properly, and knocked on his door as soon as she made it to her floor, still carrying her purse and computer bag. It’d been late, but her mind was buzzing, and she’d wanted to explain… 

“Work,” she blurted, swaying slightly when he opened the door. She braced herself against the frame, rubbing her eyes blearily. “I don’t have your number, so I couldn’t call, I’m sorry…”

“No, no don’t worry – “

“Oh – Um, did I wake you up?” The bathrobe spoke volumes.

“Definitely not,” said Luke, gesturing vaguely into his living room. Rey caught a glimpse of the blue glow of a computer in the background. “Work. Can’t seem to shut it off tonight.” He frowned, taking in her rumpled clothing and pale, drawn face. “Are you all right?” Rey nodded, wincing as she pushed her hopelessly frizzy hair out of her eyes. _I must be a mess…_

“Yeah, just tired. The First Order is giving everyone ulcers.” Luke’s eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.

“This sounds like a long story,” he said. “Would you – “ The door opened slightly wider. “Would you like to sit down? You look beat.” 

_I have to go take a shower and get some sleep,_ she thought.

“Yeah,” she said. _Just for a second…_ “Shoes off?” she asked when she was over the threshold. 

“If you don’t mind,” said Luke, and led her into the living room.

Rey all but sunk into his couch and tried her best not to fall asleep. Luke’s apartment had the same basic layout as hers’ and smelled strongly of coffee and paper, especially in the living room, where an old computer and mountains of crumpled up paper sat in the corner. Warm lamps lined the walls – he’d broken out the large, main space with bookshelves and lightly worn furniture. She was too tired to register much else besides Luke sitting across from her on a wooden chair, sipping something out of a mug. 

He let her rant about the First Order for a time – it was well-worn territory, thanks to their evening runs. Even in her exhausted state, Rey managed to only mention Kylo in passing – she didn’t even want to _think_ about him around Luke. When she’d worn herself out and sagged back into the cushions, a lump growing in her throat, he tensed, hesitated, and then asked, quietly, if she’d ever gone cliff running along Niima Cove. 

_Oh._

“Not for awhile,” said Rey slowly. “It’s actually one of my favorite trails…” 

_Well, it was…_

“It’s probably some of the last days you can do it safely,” he said. October was almost gone, and when Winter arrived in earnest everything in and around the Cove would be either be coated with ice or blasted with stinging wind. 

“Ky…I haven’t been able to find a partn – someone to go with,” she said. _Don’t think of it._ She had introduced it to Finn, and they had made a regular tradition of it ever since they met in university, but _that_ had stopped almost as soon as she moved in with Kylo, no matter how many times she told him that she was most definitely _not_ Finn’s type. 

He wouldn’t go with her, either, which meant that she couldn’t go at all. Even in the best of times, the cliffs could be extremely dangerous. ‘Never hike alone,’ her dad had always said…

“I’m going on Saturday. Would you like to come?” asked Luke. “Sounds like the rest of the week is going to be more of the same.”

“Really?” Rey blurted. “I – “

“It’s OK if you can’t,” said Luke quickly. 

“What? Yes!” said Rey, grinning broadly, valiantly resisting the inexplicable urge to clap her hands. And possibly giggle. 

And if her chest got a little tight at that wide, bright smile, well, so what? 

Rey sighed, twiddling with her mouse. Her eyes flicked once again to the clock. _Please be over soon…_

“…Rey?” Max hissed, reaching over John’s head and hitting the mute button on the phone. “Resistance analysis?”

“Sorry!” she whispered and hurriedly pulled up her spreadsheet.

 _Snap out of it,_ she thought. _Do your damn job._

“Routine analysis has shown a consistent long-term life of sixteen years…”

 

* 

 

Rey was ready and waiting with her backpack and an enormous thermos of coffee at 8 in the morning the next day. They took Luke’s car, mostly because the front (and back) seats weren’t covered with scrap paper, empty coffee cups, and other odds and ends that Rey just hadn’t moved into her closet yet. The old Land Rover was a bit worn out on the inside, but clean, if smelling vaguely of charcoal. She spotted a duffel bag, a toolbox, and several blankets folded up in the backseat. 

“Bug-out bag?” she asked, cracking open the thermos. 

“Breakdown bag,” said Luke, grinning. “I got stuck on the highway during the blizzard of ’88. In about four feet of snow. With a dead battery. Did you bring any for me?” 

“Actually yes,” she deadpanned. Rey was alternating between balancing the massive thermos precariously between her knees, and gulping coffee right out of it. “In my pack. Want some?”

“When we get there. How late did you stay up, anyway?”

“I got home at 10, “ said Rey, rolling her eyes. “Basically fell into bed. You know.”

“Ouch,” he said. “Hang on to that…” Rey yelped as they hit a pothole, almost dropping the thermos. “Sorry!”

“I blame the mayor,” she grumbled. “Our tax dollars hard at work.” She took another swig of coffee, wincing as her stomach growled.

“Agreed,” said Luke. “Have you eaten yet?”

“Define ‘eat’.” 

“Coffee doesn’t count. Not if you want to keep up with me today.” 

Rey grinned, quirking up her eyebrow.

“Such confidence…It will be your undoing…”

“I don’t know, you’re pretty rusty this week,” said Luke magnanimously. “Due to circumstances beyond your control, of course…”

“Don’t. You. Dare.”

“…And we can skip this today if you’re not up to it.”

“Are you kidding? I’ve been looking forward to this _all week.”_

“Really?” said Luke. “When was the last time you came here?”

Rey pursed her lips, organizing her thoughts as Luke parked on the dirt lot close to the shore. Niima café was doing some brisk business – a lot of locals were taking advantage of the last days of Fall. Runners and hikers in windbreakers and sweats were scattered in colorful blotches up and down the trail and beach, splotches of color in the deepening fog. 

“Almost 2 years,” she said quietly. “I used to get out here a lot, but…” She glanced at him warily, seeing if he’d read much into it.

“But?” Luke prompted, shutting down the engine. He unbuckled his seatbelt, but made no move to open his door.

“This guy I was dating didn’t want to go,” said Rey, with the most realistic laugh she could manage. “Was dating. I…It didn’t work out. We should go.” She jumped out of the car without another word, avoiding Luke’s suddenly sharp gaze. “Coming?” 

“Food first,” he said, after a moment. “The take-out window doesn’t look so busy…”

“Yeah,” she said stiffly. “They have good eggs.”

“Not from what I remember…” 

Rey stopped dead. 

“Ok, when was the last time _you_ came here?” 

“No comment,” he said archly. “But you are definitely wearing nostalgia goggles.”

“Food nostalgia doesn’t count.”

 

*

 

Twenty minutes later, Rey had scarfed down half a plate of scrambled eggs while an appalled Luke looked on. 

“I think we may have to agree to disagree,” said Rey, leaning back with a contented sigh. “Want the rest?” She didn’t want to hit the trail on a full stomach. 

“No thank you,” said Luke. They were sitting in the open back of the Land Rover, their legs swinging over the edge. The wind had seriously started to pick up, and after Rey had lost a handful of napkins and her first plate outside the Café, they had retreated back to the parking lot. 

“You don’t know what you’re missing…”

“Yes,” said Luke. “Yes, I do.”

“Hey…Rey?”

Rey almost dropped her plate.

“Poe?” she sputtered. Poe Dameron stepped into view. He was wearing a red sweatshirt, and looking rather windswept. And was clearly in the middle of a massive double-take.

“You know, when you said that you had plans today, I could have sworn you meant the library,” he said, his eyes flicking from Rey to Luke and back again. “Or maybe ‘watch Netflix and chill…’” 

“Poe, this is Luke. He lives across the hall from me,” she said quickly. Both of them put their food down and stood. “We go running after work. Luke, this is…”

“Poe Dameron, at your service,” said Poe, stepping up and extending his hand. “Rey and I are good friends,” he said. _“Very_ good friends.” He punctuated the ‘very’ with a stern look, and a rather unnecessarily firm grip on Luke’s hand.

“Luke Skywalker,” said Luke seriously. “It’s good to meet you. I – “

“So do you want extra cheese, or…Rey?” 

Finn appeared, carrying two coffee cups and a bag of something fried and delicious. His eyes grew round as he took in the scene. 

“Finn! Hi!” said Rey. _Thank. You. God._

“Finn, did you – “

“Luke, this is Finn Lars,” said Rey, shooting Poe a _look._ “We’ve been friends since college. He’s - “

“-- My boyfriend,” said Poe, locking eyes with Luke. “We’re going out on the cliffs today.”

“And so are we,” said Rey.

“Really?” said Finn. Rey’s face reddened as he looked intently at Luke. A broad smile spread slowly across her friend’s face. Seeming to come to a decision, Finn set down the food and shook Luke’s hand. _“Great_ to meet you,” he said. 

Rey let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. Next to her, she felt Poe do the same. 

“Well, well, well…” said Poe under his breath. Then he smiled. “Scoot over.” 

And so Rey found herself with the bag of food in her lap, squished between Poe and Luke in the back of the truck. Finn crowded in on Luke’s other side and started passing coffee down the line. 

“I’m with Luke about the eggs,” said Poe through a mouthful of cheeseburger. “She’ll eat _anything.”_

“Says the man eating _that_ right before a run.”

“Har har.”

 

*

 

After lunch Finn and Poe led the way down the trail. Since the rough path was really only wide enough to safely fit two people running side by side, Poe managed to not-so-subtly maneuver himself so that him and Luke were running side by side, a few paces behind Finn and Rey. 

Which she was rather grateful for, to be honest…After five days of no running, she was feeling a bit sore. Not winded, but she’d definitely need to stretch.

They were also talking. A _lot._ And looking up at her and Finn and grinning. And if Rey strained her ears she could _almost_ make out what they were saying…

 _Be nice Poe, please,_ she thought. 

“So how long has this been going on?” asked Finn.

“How long has what been going on?” said Rey, watching the path _very_ carefully.

“You and Luke,” said Finn. “’Running buddies?’ As in a ‘see him every day and engage in physical activities of mutual interest’ buddy?”

“Finn…”

“Hey, I could have gone with ‘get hot and sweaty after work,’ but I’m not Poe.”

“Finn!”

“Hey,” he said. “You’ve been holding out on us. And if you’re seriously seeing some guy every day – “

“It’s not -- ”

“ – Can you really blame me for being curious?”

Rey sighed. 

“Especially if you both live in the Industrial District. You’ve still got the baton, right?”

“In my backpack,” said Rey sharply. _And I’m wishing I didn’t._ “But…Ok, yeah, you can be curious.” She sighed. “I’d probably be the same way if it was you.” 

“Was that so hard?” Finn smiled. “Now, I think you owe me a story.”

“Technically I met him the day I picked up the keys…”

Rey had just gotten up to when Luke had given her a lift on his bike when they reached one of the numerous observation points that lined the cliff wall. The four tramped up to the top of the wooden platform and leaned on the railing, taking in the view. Most of the fog had cleared, and thus they had a unseasonably clear view of Niima Cove, the rocky beach, the soaring, dark crags and the edge of the reef under the dark water. 

After catching their breath, Poe tugged Finn to the side, where they immediately dived into a rather heated conversation. Rey balanced against the fence on Luke’s right and started to stretch out her hamstrings, wincing. 

“Don’t say ‘I told you so,’” she grumbled, bent over with one leg bent at the knee, the other straight and at an angle to the ground, toes pointed up. 

“Wasn’t going to,” he said, watching her. 

“It’s actually not as bad as I thought it would be,” said Rey, straightening. “I just need to loosen up a bit. Ergh…” She repeated the exercise for her other leg. “It’s pretty hot out today, isn’t it?” Luke passed her his water bottle, nodding emphatically. 

At some point in the last half hour, he and Poe had removed their sweatshirts – Luke was using his to wipe off his face, and grimacing as it came away wet. His t-shirt was dark with sweat. 

“Why the hell did I wear this?” he muttered. 

“Amen,” said Rey, removing her own sweatshirt and spilling water down her front in her hurry to drink. “Crap…” _Thank God for opaque t-shirts…_

“But for real, I’m really glad we came out here today,” Rey said, leaning against the railing, soaking up the sun and the view. “Look at that…” She breathed in and out with the wind. Luke smiled.

“So am I,” he said. “It’s been too long.”

“Hey, Rey?” Finn stepped up behind them. “Poe’s stomach’s bothering him, so we’re going to head back.”

“Oog,” said Poe, clutching his belly. Rey’s eyes narrowed. Poe was certainly sweating buckets, but – 

“Talk soon, ok?” said Finn. He dragged Poe off down the trail as soon as Rey nodded. 

Rey was never sure, but she _thought_ she heard both of them break into a run as soon as they were out of sight. 

And she definitely hadn’t imagined Poe’s _wink._

 

*

 

Rey and Luke kept going until they reached the Grand Caverns. They had the place almost completely to themselves – at that point the trail had degenerated into a vaguely flat, worn path on the edge of the now alarmingly high cliff, not a safety rail to be seen. 

The air was different up here, cleaner. The only sound was their sneakers crunching on the stone, the wind and waves, and seagulls squalling overhead. Rey walked as close to the edge of the cliff as she could get, distantly aware of Luke’s surprise. Memories enveloped her as she peered over the side. She felt Luke at her back – a few paces away, but unmistakably _there._

“The last time I was up here, I was with Finn.” The words came slowly, spooling out in rough shapes, strange on her tongue and in her ears. “We had a fight.”

_I told him I was moving in with Kylo…_

Luke was quiet, but something shifted in the air. She wanted to speak.

“It was our place, you know?” she said. “A good place. So coming up here…” She turned to face him. “Thank you.”

“Rey…”

“Really.” She stepped closer on instinct as an especially violent gust of wind shook the cliff. 

“I should be thanking you,” Luke said, looking down at her. She was almost close enough to tuck her head underneath his chin. “It’s been…longer than I’d like for me, too.”

“Hey,” she whispered. “It’s good manners to accept thanks.”

“Then you are very welcome,” he said. He tensed, breath shuddering in his lungs. Rey leaned forward, her nerves tight as a bowstring, on the edge of _something._

There was a loud _crack_ far below – a wave, the wind? Rey, startled, jumped back, completely forgetting where she was. A scream ripped through her throat as she felt the rock crumble underneath her feet. 

Time ran slow and sticky. Her vision blurred – Luke’s shout sounded very far away. _Well, that’s it, then,_ she thought. 

And then she was pressed tight against something warm and solid - _Luke?_ \- and there was an arm wrapped tightly around her waist. Her cheek was pressed to something rough-soft, which was also tickling her nose. She blinked. She couldn’t see… _Oh._

“Shit!”

The earth shifted again as Luke stumbled backward, Rey clinging to him. They overbalanced and fell backwards onto the trail. 

They lay there until they stopped shaking, and held each other the entire way back to the car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Yeah, so I did _that._
> 
> 2\. Luke passed Stage 1 of Finn and Poe's Manly Gauntlet of Fire and Pain. They'll save the Shovel Talk for when he passes Stage 3.
> 
> 3\. Have [ a commercially available police baton. ](https://www.selfdefenseproducts.com/products/batons/j-and-l-expandable-batons) You can also get [extendable stun-rods. ](https://www.selfdefenseproducts.com/products/stun-guns/stun-batons)
> 
> 4\. Everyone knows what [Chekhov's Gun](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ChekhovsGun) is, right? RIGHT?
> 
> 5\. [ The ‘stick’ quote? Not Aristotle. ](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Archimedes) See what I did there? And c'mon, Rey needs to have some kind of staff...
> 
>  **EDIT:** I fixed the links. WTH?


	5. Lost and Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Rey recover, and grow closer. An unexpected reunion complicates things.

They all but stumbled back to the parking lot, and made a quick trip the Urgent Care clinic a few blocks away, at Rey’s insistence.

“You hit the ground with about 130 extra pounds on your chest,” she said firmly as Luke gave her a hand up into his truck. "You’re getting checked out.”

“I didn’t hit my head. I’m _fine.”_ But Rey caught the slight waver in his step. She laid her hand on his arm gently.

“Humor me? Please…” 

“Fine. But you’re going too.”

It was a slow day at Niima Urgent Care. They were hustled in quickly – the staff was well-used to dealing with sprained ankles, broken bones, and nasty cuts from the influx of tourists during the summer, and the more adventurous locals in the Fall and Winter. 

She wished that she could have gone in with him, but she wasn’t family.

They let her out first, after checking her mobility range. 

“Whiplash,” the doctor said. “From your description of the accident, the risk of chronic symptoms is high – your head whipping back and then forward.”

“I don’t feel anything,” said Rey, rubbing at her neck gingerly. 

“Shock,” he said. “You need to rest. Symptoms sometimes take awhile to manifest, but if they do, you’ll need to take it easy, and if it gets bad enough physical therapy is an option. No cliff running for awhile.”

He wrote her a ‘scrip for three doses of codeine, and told her to stick to ibuprofen unless the pain got worse.

It turned out that Luke had bruised a rib but, luckily, he he’d fallen ‘the right way,’ as a rather disturbingly sharp nurse told them when he’d finally been released, after what was probably the longest thirty minutes of Rey’s life.

Luke had apparently taken most of the impact on his hip and leg. They were both told, on no uncertain terms, to rest up for the rest of the weekend, and possibly into the week. 

“Especially you,” the nurse said, looking pointedly at Luke. “No hero-ing for at least two weeks. And you,” she said to Rey, over Luke’s protests. “Go easy on him.”

“The hell did she mean by that?” said Rey as they headed out the sliding doors, passing a couple carrying a little girl with her arm in a sling and a lollipop in her mouth. 

“Nothing, I’m sure,” said Luke, turning bright red. Rey shrugged.

“Well, I’m driving,” she said. “Keys?”

 

*

 

They didn’t get back until late afternoon. Filling their prescriptions took a stupidly long time – Luke had been prescribed several days worth of painkillers, and the pharmacy backlog was especially nasty that day. They wound up waiting for almost an hour, Rey pretending not to notice that Luke was pretending that he wasn’t in a considerable amount of pain. 

She wasn’t exactly in top shape herself. The damage was finally catching up to her, an ache growing in her neck and shoulders that Rey knew would likely shift from dull to stabbing in a few hours. It was, after all, pretty much the definition of ‘this is really going to hurt tomorrow’. 

Worse, sitting in the pharmacy waiting area with nothing to do but look at crappy magazines and _think,_ hyperaware of Luke at her side, hiding his pain, the events of the afternoon started to swim into horrible, crystal clear focus. 

She could have died. They _both_ could have died. 

And now Luke was hurt, because she hadn’t been careful. 

Rey couldn’t stop herself from looking at him. He sat rigidly, his ribs supported by the light brace he’d been given at the clinic, his face lined with tension and fatigue. She swallowed dryly.

How do you thank someone who just saved your life? 

 

*

 

They both gulped 800 mg of ibuprofen as soon as they got back to the truck, and fortunately made it home just as Rey’s neck was starting to seize up. Thanks to the freight elevator, they were able to get everything upstairs and into Luke’s apartment in one trip, despite their condition. Rey dropped their backpacks unceremoniously next to his couch, smacked an adhesive hot pack on the back of her neck, and flopped down onto said couch with a contented sigh, tugging Luke with her.

For awhile they just relaxed. The days were getting shorter, so golden evening light filled the far-away spaces, opening up little nooks and shapes that Rey hadn’t spotted the last time she was there. Like her place, Luke’s apartment was one wide open space that trapped light. However, he’d clearly made it his own. The common area was sub-divided by tall bookcases and shelving, filled with books, pictures, and odds and ends ranging from an intricately carved walking stick on the coffee table to a ten-foot tapestry hanging between two windows. Lamps of a variety of shapes and sizes were interspersed all over the space, not an electrical cord to be seen.

“Remind me to ask you how you did that,” said Rey drowsily. 

“Mmmph?”

“The lights.”

“Says the engineer.” She could feel his smile.

“It gets pretty dark in here at night, if I don’t use the Close Encounters lights.” Luke turned towards her and pointed at the ceiling. Rey wrinkled her nose and shifted closer. _Man this couch is soft…and warm…_

“I have the same ones,” she said. The building still had the original electrical system installed – industrial lighting and all. The floodlights high up in the ceiling certainly did their job, but… “Way too harsh. They just make my place look…Well, it’s just me anyway, but it looks emptier than it is.” _Empty and old and tired, too much blank space…_

“Yes,” said Luke. He hesitated. “I’ve lived here almost ten years. It took me awhile to get used to it, but…Filling the space helps.” 

“Just you?” Rey asked without thinking. _Shit._ “Ok…Please, please forget I said that,” she said. “It’s none of my business.”

“No, don’t be sorry,” he said. There was a smile in his voice. “Just me. And my work. And there’s more around here than most people think. I didn’t really _see_ it until I started running, but it’s true.” 

“Thank you for showing me,” said Rey quietly. “When I first moved here, I – “ she swallowed. “I was trying to disappear.” She shut her eyes as the emotion she’d been pushing away flooded in. 

_Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t -_

“Hey,” said Luke, sitting up. He took her hand in his. “It’s all right.” And carefully pulled her into a hug. 

It felt like falling. Rey pressed as close as she dared, mindful of his rib, shuddering as the ice gripping her chest cracked, and she shook silently in his arms. Luke leaned back into the couch and rocked her gently, stroking her back. Rey pressed her cheek to his chest and just _breathed,_ filling her senses with the smell of his skin and the low rhythm of his heart. 

He held her until her pulse quieted, and the dry, shuddering sobs drained away. 

_He’s so warm,_ Rey thought as she came back to herself. _Warm and solid…_ She tensed, her heart stuttering as her awareness shifted from steady, human, comfort to a strong body – breath and blood and _Luke_ – so close to her skin. 

Luke’s arms tightened, sensing the shift. Rey felt him draw away before he actually moved. She swallowed and wrestled down the sudden urge to cry again.

“We should probably get up,” she said. “Get you settled before we pass out.”

Luke nodded slowly. 

“That’s probably a good idea. Same thing goes for you, too,” he said, looking at her sternly. “Are you still sleeping on an air mattress? That can’t be good for your neck.” 

“Maybe…Ok, yes. But it’s a really good air mattress!”

“Rey...”

“Really!”

Luke just looked at her, the corner of his mouth quirking up. Rey threw up her hands.

“Ok. Fine. It’s awful. Can I stay with you?”

Rey cringed as soon as she heard the words come out of her mouth.

“I mean, this couch is practically a bed!” she said quickly, blood rushing hotly to her face. _Which we are lying on. Right now._ “I mean – “

“Of course – I _did_ promise your friends that I’d keep an eye on you,” said Luke with a laugh.

Rey groaned.

“Under threat of severe bodily harm,” she said. She’d texted them while waiting in the pharmacy. One long phone call later they had Luke swearing to watch out for Rey, in oddly specific ways. Such as _not letting her sleep on that fucking air mattress._

“Which means I’m taking the couch,” said Luke.

“Absolutely not,” said Rey, bouncing to her feet. “You’re the one with the bruised rib.” Luke rolled his eyes.

“All right, all right…” 

 

*

 

She helped him into his bedroom, whistling in surprise.

“Wow, you could fit five people in this thing,” she said, gesturing at the California king-sized bed in the middle of the room. 

“I’ve never tried,” he said. “Not even in the seventies.” Rey snorted.

And he could…if it wasn’t half-covered with notebooks, crumpled paper, and uncapped pens. A heavy laptop lay on what she assumed was Luke’s space, the cooling fan wheezing faintly.

“Ok, here you go…Are you usually on this side?” 

Luke hid a wince as he sat, grinning bemusedly as Rey began piling pillows against the headboard. 

“Yes, right there – Oh no, watch out –“

“…Seriously?” Rey held up a half-full coffee cup that had been nestled somewhere between the laptop and a binder labeled ‘First Drafts - Burn After Reading Or Else’.

“I have no idea how that got there,” said Luke innocently. 

“I’m sure,” she said. “I’ll just take that. She said to take it easy on you. So I am.”

It took a couple trips to the kitchen and the living room, and a _lot_ of direction from Luke, but Rey finally managed to sort out what she’d found. Most of it was notes and reference for his current project – half of which went in the office, which was already practically overflowing with books, and the other on the enormous desk in the living room.

Luke smiled when she found a little wheeled desk that fit right over the corner recliner.

“I was wondering where I put that,” he said.

“I’m going to know your place better than you when we’re done,” she said, with an odd flutter in her chest.

“I work everywhere,” said Luke, gesturing at the small pile of notebooks, reference, and pencils that he had insisted on keeping within arm’s reach. “If I wake up with an idea, a dream, a word, and my notebooks are right here, I can get it down before I forget.” 

“That’s good thinking,” said Rey, sitting carefully on the edge of the bed. “Does that happen a lot?”

“Yes,” he said, smiling ruefully. “The results tend to accumulate, as you just saw.”

“You really do live for this, don’t you?”

“Yes, I suppose I do,” said Luke. 

“Is it ok if I read one of your books?” she asked. “I checked,” she said, smiling a little. “But I can’t find anything under your name. Do you use a pen na -- ” Rey frowned, her eye caught by a book under the nightstand.

“Hey…”

It was _The Lost Cove,_ the book that she’d bought for Finn weeks ago.

“This is you?” she asked. “ ‘Owen Amidala’?” There was no picture of the author, and the bio was short – just a quick paragraph about ‘Owen’s’ writing history, and three other book titles.

“My uncle’s first name, and my mother’s maiden name,” said Luke. “It seemed like a good idea at the time…”

“I got this for Finn right after I moved. I read a couple pages. Ok. More than a couple pages. It’s…good,” she said, blushing a little as she remembered just what she’d read. 

“Thank you,” he said. “Keep it. Really,” he said, waving off her objection. “I have at least a dozen floating around here somewhere.”

“Thanks,” said Rey. “I’ve been trying to rebuild my library, after – “ She couldn’t get the words out. “Most of my books were…lost during the move.” 

“Somehow I don’t think you mean they fell off the roof of your car,” said Luke, watching her carefully. Rey shook her head. She couldn’t meet his eyes.

“I don’t want – I _can’t_ talk about it. Not yet.”

“All right,” said Luke. “Well…Feel free to use the shower – down the hall to the left. Have you got anything to sleep in?”

“It’s, um, laundry day,” said Rey. _From a certain point of view._ She usually slept in a camisole and panties, but that was definitely not going to work here.

“Hmm…I’ll find something you can borrow.” Luke stood carefully and moved toward the bureau. “There are towels in the linen closet.”

“Thanks…My shower is terrible. Finn’s trying to help me with it, but…Are you sure you don’t want to shower first?” Rey asked. _Shit, I’m babbling._ Luke shook his head, pointing at the door on the other side of the bedroom while he rummaged through the drawers.

“I’ve got my own. Don’t worry about the water pressure. Aha…” He tossed her a well-worn, oversized, gray t-shirt. Rey held it up, grinning. 

“‘The Alliance’?” she said.

“It’s kind of a long story,” said Luke. 

“It’s perfect,” said Rey. _It’ll come about halfway down my thigh…_ “I’ll, um, just go do that…”

She made a hasty retreat. 

 

*

 

Rey took a quick trip across the hall to pick up some bath supplies, underwear, and a change of clothes, and then headed for Luke’s bathroom, resolving to get in and out as quickly as she could. She could hear the shower going on the other side of Luke’s door. _I hope he’s all right…_

Rey had injured her ribs– bruised _and_ broken – several times over the course of her life. People frequently underestimated just how difficult something as simple as taking off a shirt was when one side of your torso was a mess. She was still grateful to Finn for all the times he’d helped her in and out of her clothes after she’d broken three ribs in a car accident their last year of university.

She paused in the hallway, listening to the water and the faint echo of movement on the other side of the bedroom door. He’d clearly managed to get undressed without her, but movement sometimes exacerbated…

 _He might need some help._ Her feet moved towards the door. 

Rey shook herself. _You’re being silly. He was moving all right. Hovering won’t help._ And she wondered, with a twinge of guilt, if she was being entirely altruistic. _Kylo always said I was too clingy…_

_It was just a hug._

Fortunately, Rey cut of _that_ train of thought before it got rolling, and locked herself in the bathroom.

She folded her clothes neatly – guests did not leave messes – and stepped under the blissfully warm water. Rey sighed in contentment. Apparently the landlord gave his tenants a lot of latitude when it came to apartment modification. The tiles, for example, had definitely been installed fairly recently, and there was not a speck of rust to be seen. The lights were bright, and the air was somehow…clearer. She couldn’t imagine anything with more than two legs living in the cupboards. The pipes did have the same alarming groan-squeal that hers did, though. Finn said that there wasn’t all that much he could do about it – the central water system hadn’t been updated since the seventies, so there were going to be odd pressure bursts, and the occasional sudden temperature fluctuation. 

_I should get them in here – Finn and Luke can talk shop._ Rey smiled as she scrubbed a day’s worth of sweat and grit out of her hair. _Well, I_ did _want them to meet Luke…I guess the universe intervened._

Rey was pretty sure that they liked him, too. She was more relieved than she could say.

 

*

 

After her shower, Rey put on Luke’s shirt. It fell mid-thigh, and had that soft, comfortable, feel that only came from years of wear. It came up to her collarbone, but the collar was so stretched out that it was almost off-the-shoulder. And it was thin. Rey looked at herself in the mirror and squelched a sudden impulse to cross her arms over her chest. The shirt was loose, and still opaque, but if she stood up straight she could definitely make out the tips of her breasts. 

Rey glared at herself in the mirror. 

_It’s_ pajamas. _It’s_ fine. _You’re ok._

She gathered her things and headed downstairs. She took her time laying out blankets and a pillow on the couch, listening for the shower. After she heard it turn off, she wrapped herself carefully in an extra blanket and headed back upstairs with a glass of water and Luke’s meds. Rey knocked on the door, brushed her wet hair behind her ears, and made sure that the blanket was secure, despite the edges trailing on the floor.

“Hey,” she said. “Are you decent? I brought the good drugs.”

“Come in,” said Luke. 

Rey almost dropped the glass. Luke was seated on the end of his bed, toweling off his hair. He was dressed in a long, gray, bathrobe and had clearly jumped out of the shower in a hurry – he was still dripping, and the bathrobe clung to his shoulders and chest like a second skin. And he was very obviously not wearing much under it. 

She knew, from a perfectly objective standpoint, that Luke was in good shape. Hell, he gave her a run for her money almost every day of the week. His clothing didn’t exactly hide it, either, but it was just a suggestion, really, of a lean runner’s frame and the occasional hint of solid, spare, muscle. The robe didn’t show much more – Hell, it was thicker than most of his running shirts – but the soaked material and the way the neckline was slipping open seemed to _shout_ for her touch. There would be almost nothing at all between her hand and his skin if she just – 

“Meds. Doctor’s orders,” she said, hovering in the doorway, willing her feet to _stay where they were, dammit._ Luke froze. He did the smallest of double-takes, looking at her as though he’d never seen her before. Then he set the towel down across his lap and waved her in.

“I see you do house calls,” he said, in a slightly strained voice. 

“Not usually,” she said, sitting next to him. “Only on special occasions. Down the hatch.” 

“What about yours?” said Luke, eyeing her warily. She shook her head, tearing her eyes away from the droplet of water trailing down the deep V of his robe. 

“I took more ibuprofen – I’m saving the good stuff for when it gets bad.” He frowned, but took the water anyway. “I’ll be fine.”

Rey hesitated.

“Are you feeling better?” she asked.

“A little,” said Luke. “Thank you.”

“Good,” said Rey. 

They looked at each other. Rey swallowed. The room suddenly seemed to small, and too hot, the bed too soft, for the blanket. She wished she could just slip it off, feel the air, cool and free, on her skin. But – 

“Luke – “

“Rey – “ 

They both laughed. 

“Good night,” she said, when she knew they weren’t going to trip over each other’s words.

“Good night, Rey.” His smile was warm, and maybe – just maybe – a little sad.

Rey walked shakily downstairs, and wondered what the hell had just happened.

 

*

 

Rey woke just after three in the morning. Her neck was throbbing, her position on the couch had pushed it into exactly the wrong angle, and her whole body was strung as tight as a piano wire. She stared into the dark, vague shapes of Luke’s living room, and bit back a low sob.

Rey squeezed her eyes shut and tried to go back to sleep, but…

She gave up. 

Rey stood, wrapped herself in a fuzzy orange blanket, and knocked quietly on the bedroom door. 

“Luke…” she whispered into the dark. _If he’s asleep, I’ll leave. If he’s asleep, I’ll leave…_

“Rey? What’s – Come in.”

Luke flicked on the bedside lamp and sat up slightly, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

“What is it? What’s the matter?” 

“I – It’s my neck,” she said. She could barely get the words out. “The couch, I – Can I crash here?” she asked, her face flaming. “I don’t move around much.” That woke him up. He blinked with surprise, but, once again, slowly nodded. She dropped her eyes and shuffled around to the other side of the bed.

“Of course,” he said. “Watch out for the – oops…” Rey smiled tremulously as she pulled a chunky notebook and pen out from under the covers. 

She waited for him to turn off the light, and then dropped the blanket and climbed in. She sighed in surprised pleasure as the cramp lessened slightly, her head cradled by an enormous pillow. The mattress shifted as Luke turned towards her. 

“Better?” he whispered. He sounded very far away. Rey felt suddenly awkward – there was enough room for at least three people between them. 

“Yeah,” she said. “Thanks.” His response was quiet.

“Anytime.”

 

*

 

He shook her awake around 5 am. 

“Rey – Rey, it’s me -- ” Luke shifted away as she lashed out blindly, the dark, unfamiliar room pressing in on her, reacting to the strange, heavy shape lying next to her. The ceiling swam and shifted overhead. _Where -_

She came back to herself when Luke turned the light on. 

“What – what is it?” She sat bolt upright in bed, dripping with sweat, her shoulders shaking convulsively.

“You were having a nightmare,” said Luke. “Hold on – I’ll get you some water.”

“I’m…Ok…” Rey whispered, and wished that she could disappear. 

Luke returned a few minutes later, with a glass of water and a damp washcloth. She gulped it down, gripping the glass tight. 

“Here. Sometimes this helps.” Luke passed her the cloth, motioning that she should hold it to her forehead. 

It did. Slowly she settled back, the panicked burn in her chest fading away. Luke turned off the light and lay carefully on his side. 

“I’m sorry,” Rey whispered. The dark swallowed her words. 

“Don’t be,” came the answer. “Try to sleep…”

She dropped off surprisingly quickly. 

The same could not be said for Luke.

 

*

 

Sunlight pricked at Rey’s eyelids, nudging her gently awake. She was warm, unusually so, and much higher off the ground than – Oh. The room snapped into focus, and Rey realized that she wasn’t alone. And she was much further away from the edge of the bed than she remembered. _Definitely not on my side._

The mattress moved beneath her, and the unmistakable warm weight of a man’s chest was pressed to her back. There was a sleepy rumble, and then an arm draped over her middle and drew her close. Rey stiffened, her emotions roiling. But Luke’s breath was deep and even, his heart a steady rumble against her back. He was asleep. 

She breathed out slowly. 

This was actually – 

They both jerked awake as someone pounded on the apartment door. 

“What the hell – “ Rey threw back the covers, disentangled herself from Luke, and looked around wildly. 

Luke groaned, pain creasing his face. Rey darted to his side.

“Luke!”

“I just sat up too fast – don’t worry – What time is it?“

The visitor knocked again.

“Seven twenty,” said Rey, glancing at the bedside clock. “Are you expecting anyone?” Luke shook his head with a wince. “I’ll just check who it is, ok? Don’t move too fast.”

“Wait – “

She wrapped herself in the blanket and headed downstairs.

“All right, all right, son of a bitch…” Rey rolled her eyes as the knocking intensified. She unlatched the door, wincing a bit as she heard Luke moving hurriedly about upstairs. _He really needs to install a peep hole…_ “Hey!” She cried out in indignation as the visitor shouldered past her.

“It’s about time, Uncle. You’re a hard man to – Rey?”

She staggered back. The blanket hit the floor. 

_”Kylo?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Quite the coincidence, Kylo deciding to go see his Uncle that Sunday, isn't it?  
> 2\. Just my opinion, but I think that 'wearing his shirt' is romantic as all hell, whether it's the classic white button down or a well-worn, oversized, t-shirt. Not to mention hot.  
> 3\. Yes, I am a massive, massive, smut-tease.  
> 4\. Oh Rey...When you wrap yourself in a giant blanket while wearing a thigh-length t-shirt, it's going to look like you've got nothing on under the blanket. Just sayin'.


	6. Wakeup Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Rey is introduced to the Skywalker Family Drama, Luke and Leia decide that they Need to Talk About Kylo, Artoo is a Labrador retriever, and Kylo earns his reputation. Also, there is snuggling.

Luke’s front door slammed shut, knocking Rey out of her shock. She snatched up the blanket and backed into the living room. Her backpack was next to the couch. The middle compartment was open. If she was fast, she could get her baton out seconds – 

“Fuck, it _is_ you,” said Kylo. Rey made her legs move her backwards as he took in her rumpled hair, flushed cheeks, and Luke’s – _his Uncle’s?_ \-- t-shirt riding up her thigh.

His eyes fell to her chest. 

“Where did you get that shirt?” he asked. 

Rey said nothing. She didn’t meet his eyes – she focused on the full picture, like Poe’s Uncle had taught her. 

_Everyone has tells,_ he’d said, as she mimicked his stance, the metal rod heavy in her hand. _The eyes can mess with your head. Some guys fake left, then hit right._ He’d demonstrating his point by staring fixedly at her left shoulder, and then kicking her right leg out from under her. _Trust your gut._

Kylo took a step forward. The backs of her calves hit the coffee table. _Almost there…If I can’t get my rod, I might be able to grab that walking stick…_

“Where do you think?” she said, shaking. “Don't fucking move!”

“Rey, you’re acting crazy,” he said. “You need to calm down.” Kylo’s voice filled with that low, warm, tone, the one that got a whole room listening, and made her feel small. Rey swallowed, fighting the old, fluttering, feeling that wanted to curl up in a corner and _hide._

But – 

_I am_ not _going back. Never._

“Says the asshole who just pushed his way in here,” she spat. Kylo’s face twisted with fury.

“You – “

“Ben!” 

Kylo whirled around. 

“Luke,” he said cooly. Rey edged closer to her backpack, dropping the blanket in the name of mobility. 

Luke stood straight and tall at the top of the stairs, taking in the scene in the living room. He’d thrown the gray bathrobe over his pajamas. On him, it was _regal._

Kylo’s eyes flickered with uncertainty, so fast that Rey thought she might have imagined it. A fiery thread of satisfaction shot through her as his back and shoulders tensed, and his fingers clenched involuntarily.

 _Is he_ afraid?

“What are you doing here, Ben?” said Luke, taking the stairs slowly, not a trace of his injury visible. He caught Rey’s eye. “What happened?”

“He – “ 

“I was in the neighborhood,” Kylo growled, shifting on the balls of his feet. “And _don’t_ call me that.”

“Wait, is ‘Ben’ his real name?” Rey asked, looking questioningly at Luke. 

“It is the name that I was born with,” said Kylo archly. “I decided not to live with it.”

“None of which answers my question,” said Luke, crossing the living room and planting himself directly in front of his nephew. “What are you doing here? And what, exactly, makes you think that you have the right to barge in here, unannounced, uninvited, and upset my guest?”

“Your _guest?”_ Rey flinched involuntarily as Kylo’s face contorted with rage. 

“Yes. Guest,” Luke snapped, his eyes shards of flint. “Which means that you will speak to her with respect, or not at all.”

If Rey hadn’t lived with Kylo for almost two years, she would have missed the flinch. 

“What sort of guest, Uncle?” he asked. He turned to Rey. His eyes licked up and down her body, lingering on her chest and throat.

“Kylo, _stop,”_ Rey hissed. “Why the hell are you even here?” She turned away and snatched up the blanket, wrapping herself tight from head to toe.

“Ironically enough…You,” said Kylo. Rey turned white, her fingers clutching the blanket convulsively. 

“Explain,” said Luke, his voice unnervingly quiet. 

“Well,” said Kylo. “I heard that my girlfriend moved to the Industrial District. Specifically, Ach-To Avenue – “ 

“I am not your girlfriend,” said Rey, her voice shaking. 

“And you never even tried to work things out with me. Really, Rey, I was quite hurt…”

Rey’s nails dug red crescents into her palms. 

“There was nothing to work out,” she said. “I wanted you out of my life.”

“…And then to see you here…It’s been what, three months?” Kylo’s lip curled. “Well. A man does wonder.”

Rey sucked in a breath. 

“Four,” she said. “The best four months of my life.”

Rey paused, a shivering ache in her chest. 

It was true. 

“Ben?” Luke cut in. “I’m still waiting.”

“As I was saying, when I heard that my _ex-_ girlfriend moved to Ach-To, I just got so…worried,” said Kylo, frowning at Rey. “As far as statements go, this one is rather dramatic, even for you.”

“I’m doing fine,” said Rey stiffly. “And I’m not making a statement.” 

“It was rather serious, you see,” Kylo said to Luke, shaking his head. “Two years…We made a beautiful home together. And then one morning, I wake up, and she’s just…gone.”

“And I should have done it sooner,” said Rey quietly.

“Mother gave me your address as few Christmases ago…I thought that asking you if you’d seen her around wouldn’t hurt.” He locked eyes with Luke. “All I could find out was her street, you see.” 

Silence choked the room. 

_He wants me back,_ Rey thought. The shapes and colors of the room smeared together as her thoughts slid backwards into eggshell white walls, 400-count sheets, sterile floodlights, and ivory tile cutting into her knees. And silence pouring through her head, threaded through with names and painful smiles and cold diamonds against her skin.

Her reflection in the crystal-clear, floor-to ceiling windows, a pale, painted, _thing_ in Kylo’s arms.

_You fit perfectly._

Rey swayed on her feet, her fingers pulling the blanket close. She was taking up too much space. 

The floorboards creaked. She flinched. Luke slowly stepped around the coffee table, angling his body so that he was between her and Kylo. Nephew and Uncle locked eyes.

“I’d have called ahead, but you know how it is – “

“No, Ben, I don’t,” said Luke. “We haven’t spoken since your parents’ twenty-fifth anniversary. You made it quite clear that you never wanted to see me again. You’re...” Luke’s jaw clenched. _“Hunting_ a woman who wants nothing to do with you.” He stepped closer. 

“You need to leave.”

Rey sucked in a breath. 

_Oh God. This is happening. Luke --_

Kylo laughed.

“How long have you been fu – “ 

“Kylo, stop!” said Rey, darting to Luke’s side. She held up her hand. “Just – We’ll talk later, ok?”

“No, we’re going to talk _now.”_ He reached for her. 

Luke moved faster than Rey thought was possible. He picked up the walking stick from the coffee table and twisted the handle sharply. A crackling buzz filled the air. Kylo’s eyes grew round as Luke tapped the table lightly with the end of the rod, flinching as electricity seared the wood, and the smell of ozone filled the living room. 

“Get. Out.” 

Kylo backed away, his eyes glued to the stun-rod. 

“Fine. It was nice to see you, Luke. I’ll show myself out.” He turned to Rey. “See you Monday.”

Kylo slammed the door. Luke latched the dead bolt, and deactivated the stun-rod when the footsteps stopped and the freight elevator whirred. He set the weapon down against the doorframe and headed back into the living room.

Luke approached the couch slowly, directly, and stopped at the edge of the rug. Rey stood frozen, the blanket slipping on her shoulders – she couldn’t seem to keep her fingers tight. Or look at him.

“Have you seen my phone?” 

Rey blinked.

“What?” _Is that my voice?_

“My cell,” Luke asked. His voice was quiet. She felt him watching her.

“Why?” She eyed the door.

“I need to – “ Luke swallowed, his voice wavering. Rey looked up. He was shaking.

“…Luke?” she whispered. She stepped forward, the blanket falling unheeded to the floor. His jaw was clenched, his face rigid with anger.

“I’m calling his mother.”

“…What?” 

Luke’s smile did not touch his eyes.

“…Who is also a lawyer.”

 

*

 

Leia Organa-Solo leaned back in her porch swing and tried to ignore the empty space at her side. The fog was rolling in, albeit slowly, and the salty air was thick with that vague heaviness that meant rain, and cold. 

_Early this year,_ she thought, yawning. The foghorns had woken her at five or so. She knew from experience that sleep would be useless after jerking awake like that. Especially with an empty bed. So she’d gotten up, turned on the coffee machine, got Artie 2 out of his bed in the kitchen, and took the graying black Labrador out for a walk on the storm wall. 

“You’re a good boy Artoo,” she said, smiling as the old dog’s ears perked up, his tail thumping on the wood planks. He sat up slowly and laid his head in her lap, huge brown eyes half-closed. “No, you can’t come up here,” she said, scratching his floppy ears, a laugh in her voice. “This old thing can’t hold the two of us.” And the last time she’d let him up, Han’s arm had been around her shoulders. Artoo grunted, and licked her fingers. 

“We’ve had a good run, haven’t we?” she said, once again grateful that her brother had left him in her care. Artoo spent most of the day sleeping, and damned if he hadn’t earned it. Sometimes Leia thought that he saved up all the energy for when she came home in the evenings. Or when her brother visited. 

Inside, the phone rang. Artoo perked up immediately.

“Speak of the devil,” she muttered. “I bet you it’s Luke.” Artoo lurched upright and scratched at the door, wagging his tail eagerly. Chuckling, Leia headed inside.

The seventeen-year-old Lab unleashed his inner puppy as Leia picked up the phone, balanced it on her shoulder, mindful of the cord, and settled in by the kitchen window with her coffee.

“Good morning Luke,” she said, before he could get a word out. _“Down,_ Artoo.” She shrugged two large, wiggly paws off of her lap, fished a half-chewed tennis ball out from under the kitchen table, and nudged it towards the stove. Artoo stayed where he was, and gave her a reproachful look.

“How did you know it was me?” asked Luke. 

“It’s the twin thing,” said Leia, with a little laugh. “And you’re one of maybe three people who call my landline these days.” She’d kept it because the sound quality was better, no matter what the paralegals said. “So what’s going on with you? Is the book going well?”

They made a point of at least talking on the phone every week. Between Leia’s schedule and Luke’s muse they sometimes went awhile without catching-up in person. 

Silence on the line.

“Luke?” She twisted the cord in her fingers. Artoo whined. “What’s wrong?”

“I saw Ben today,” he said. It was Leia’s turn to be speechless.

“What happened?” _Are you all right? Is_ he _all right?_

“Do you mind if I put you on the speaker?”

Leia frowned. 

“Why?” she asked sharply. “Luke, what happened?”

“It involves a friend, who is here, and should be here for this conversation.” There was a low thump in the background. “Hang on a second…” Leia could just barely make out the sound of voices. One of which was distinctly feminine. 

She glanced at the clock on the wall. _Seven-thirty._ A smile spread slowly across her face. Artoo cocked his head curiously, letting out a bemused whuff.

“I don’t know who that is either,” she whispered. “But you need to be quiet so I can listen to Luke, ok?” 

Artoo huffed, and laid his head in her lap. 

“Good boy. Luke? You still there?” There was a hollow bump.

“…I’m back. Rey, are you ok with speaker?”

There was a muffled ‘yes’, followed by a tone shift.

“Ok…Leia, I just threw Ben out of my apartment,” said Luke. “Leia?” he said, after a long silence.

“It was my fault,” a quiet voice said. Leia could almost see Luke’s grimace.

“No, it isn’t,” he said. “Leia, this is Rey. She – “

“Kylo – Ben – he showed up this morning and asked Luke to help him look for me,” said Rey. “I just moved into the building and it’s…complicated.”

“And you said no?” said Leia, her eyes narrowing. _Ben, what the hell did you do?_

“Yes,” Luke growled. “You should have seen him, Leia. It was…bad.”

Leia shut her eyes, suddenly feeling very tired.

“I’m coming over,” she said grimly. “Family meeting.” There were whispers in the background, and a faint rumble-thump, followed by might have been a sob.

“I may also need legal advice,” said Luke.

“Oh Luke…Just tell me you’re all right.”

“We’re ok. Just – I’ll see you soon.”

“I’m bringing Artoo,” said Leia. “I hope you still have his dish and bed.” The black Lab perked up instantly, his tail wagging like a propeller.

“I found the dishes last night – in the back closet under the garden hose and the tarp,” said Rey hesitantly.

 _…Really?_ Leia thought. 

“The bed’s in the upstairs closet…” said Luke. “We’ll find it.”

“Ok – I’ll be there soon. Luke…It will be all right.” 

“…See you soon, Leia.”

Leia was on her feet as soon as the line disconnected. 

“Give me ten minutes,” she said as Artoo bounced to the door and whined plaintively. “Time to go for a ride.”

 

*

 

Rey sat on the arm of the sofa as Luke put his cell phone aside. Something had loosened in her chest towards the end of their conversation with Leia. To hear it put in terms like that – out in the open, named, seen as something that you called lawyers (and sisters) about – made her feel grounded.

It was a good feeling. 

Luke leaned back into the cushions, his face creased with worry. She looked down at him and frowned. He was favoring his good side, and leaning against the end of the sofa, right next to where she was perched, the top of his head level with her waist.

“Does it hurt?”

“No – “ 

Rey glared.

“Ok, _yes._ But it’s not too bad.”

“That’s not very reassuring,” she said. Suddenly she laughed. “You’re a terrible patient.” 

Luke quirked an eyebrow.

“What?”

Rey shifted her legs around towards the inside of the sofa so that she could face him, not noticing the way that Luke’s shirt was sliding up her thighs.

“The nurse said ‘no heroing’ for oh, what was it…Three weeks?” 

Luke turned a truly spectacular shade of red.

“Two weeks,” he muttered. 

“Well Luke, I think that this morning was pretty much the _definition_ of an epic fail for that one.”

“It doesn’t count,” he said. “Ben was...out of line doesn’t even begin to describe it.” Luke glared at the door, his mouth a thin, hard line. He looked up at her fiercely.

Without thinking, Rey reached down and laid a hand on the back of his neck. He sighed as she rubbed slow, gentle circles along the hard muscle, pulling him ever-so-slightly closer into her touch and against her hip. 

“Well, it sure felt like it,” she said, flushing. “I’m going to be saying this a lot, I think…Thank you.”

It sounded wrong in her ears, felt wrong in her throat. 

“That doesn’t really cover it,” she said quietly. Luke covered her hand with his. 

“You are very welcome.”

“…Luke?”

“Hmm?”

She tugged the shirt down a bit. 

“Before your sister gets here, I’d like to talk,” she said, catching his eye. Luke nodded and squeezed her hand.

“So would I,” he said. Luke paused, and took a deep breath. His voice was quiet. “Rey, I need to ask. Did Ben hurt you?” Rey tightened her grip on his shoulder. 

“Not physically,” she said, her voice a whisper. “But it was – I was – I had to leave.” Luke’s fingers dug into the couch.

“Were you afraid?” Rey swallowed.

“Yes.” Luke tightened his grip on her hand. 

They sat in silence, Luke nestled in the crook of her arm, Rey steadying herself on his shoulders. 

“We should probably get dressed,” she said finally. “Then we can talk. And eat.”

“Probably,” said Luke. “But that would mean moving.”

“I’ll help,” she said, and immediately blushed. 

“...Really?”

“Ok, wow, that…came out wrong. But if you, um, _do_ need help, I – “ 

“Well, I won’t refuse a hand up the stairs,” he said seriously. “Or coffee.”

“Amen to that,” said Rey. 

“We’d better get to it, then,” said Luke, not moving. 

“Ok, since I’m obviously going to have to be the adult here…” Rey hopped off the end of the couch, pushing down a twinge of disappointment as she moved away from Luke’s warmth. “Come on.” She planted herself in front of Luke and held out her hands. “Don’t you want your shirt back?”

“Eh…Nope,” he said, looking her up and down. “Looks way better on you.” He took her hands firmly. Rey snorted.

“Charmer,” she said, tugging gently. “Up you go.”

They walked up the stairs together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Guess what? [Stun gun walking sticks actually exist. ](http://www.thisiswhyimbroke.com/stun-gun-walking-stick) And frankly I can't think of a better analogue to a lightsaber.  
> 2\. My family talked to our dogs a lot, the way that most people do. They definitely recognized the names of absent family members when we talked on the phone <3  
> 3\. Seriously, dogs can be hella smart <3 <3 <3  
> 4\. AUGH this was hard. I tried to keep it in the realm of 'normal human reactions to a bad situation'. And in the 'what would/should Luke and Rey do' area, calling Leia-the-lawyer seemed fairly reasonable - though if it had escalated, Rey or Luke would have called 911.  
> 5\. And since she's his Mom...Yep >:)


	7. Guest Accommodations, Parts 1 and 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey meets Leia and Artoo, and learns a little more about Luke, Kylo, and the entire situation. Important conversations are had by all. Guest accommodations are arranged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So after a long wait comes a LOOOONG chapter! And backstory (Leia fills us in). And let me just chime in to say that the support you guys have been giving me with this is just the greatest and the best thing. I LOVE YOU ALL!
> 
>  **Edit 7/11:** ...And when I say 'long' I mean it. I just checked, and it's almost 7000 words...I divided it into 2 parts. PACING, Y'ALL.

******* **

**GUEST ACCOMMODATIONS PART 1 ******

******* **

****

********

Luke steadied himself on the bedpost as Rey shut the door behind her. His heart was finally slowing down, but as the adrenaline burned away, the wisps of control holding his body upright and his emotions in check began to evaporate. Last night’s conversation with Rey played on a loop in his head, especially the five words she’d whispered into his shoulder.

_I was trying to disappear._

He didn’t know what to do. 

On some level, he’d known that she was carrying something around with her. He’d been around long enough to recognize when a person was trying to put her life back together. And whether you were 25 or 55 starting over was, to put it mildly, difficult. 

The Industrial District seemed to be the place to do it. People moved in and out of the building (and Ach-To Avenue in general) on a disconcertingly regular basis. While nobody had lived in Rey’s apartment since he’d moved in, Luke had had a few ‘hallway neighbors’ over the years. Sometimes they waved and said hello, or stopped to talk on their way to the elevator. He’d once wound up on the same running schedule as a couple with a brand-new set of twins and a puppy – had even watched Finnick the corgie when they got overwhelmed with diapers and late-night feedings. 

Luke smiled fondly at the memory. But the Durrans were neighbors, not friends. They’d moved out after a year or so, when Jaina finished her teaching degree and Kyp got promoted. He hadn’t heard from them since.

And then Rey stepped into his life. Or, well, _fell_ into it. He hadn’t expected to find a friend – to find _Rey_ \- when he’d stepped out into the hallway to get his soaked running shoes, and heard the new occupant of apartment 709 trip, fall, and curse.

Her crisp blouse, expensive trousers, understated jewelry, and pantyhose were spectacularly out of place in the barely livable apartment. Standing in the gold slant of light, her dark, shining hair pulled back harshly from the fine bones of her face, Rey had seemed to have been cut from another picture, from a glossy magazine with perfume samples in the creases, and pasted (poorly) onto that wall of rust and rot. His breath caught, and he’d looked away, planning to retreat as soon as was polite.

But then Rey smiled. She got up on her own, brushed herself off, and walked over, grimacing as her feet squelched on the floor. Her eyes were huge, and almost too bright despite the lines of fatigue and the deep shadows underneath them. She smiled with her whole self. 

Luke found himself hoping that he would see that smile again.

He got his wish that weekend. Deep in his work – the third book in the _Dark Cove_ series had skittered off in a very unexpected direction – he’d only registered Rey, Finn, and Poe’s efforts at making apartment 709 habitable after the familiar whir of a power-washer started up across the hall. They left the door open for most of the day, and _damn_ could Finn and Poe _talk!_ Ignoring them was practically impossible – their banter carried well into his apartment, even into his office, as did her very loud insistence that she pay the two men in pizza and beer. 

All was quiet, though, when he came back from his evening run. The light was off under her doorway. Luke supposed that she’d spent the night elsewhere – it was unlikely that she’d finished furnishing (and cleaning) the apartment in one day. He carried on as usual, putting her out of his mind as best as he could. 

Sunday morning he’d gotten up early, taken a look out his window, and decided that biking was wiser than running. 

Luke’s instincts had been right. The sky opened up before he got to the Cove. He headed back, pedaling fast as the broken asphalt filled up with dark water and the sidewalk began to disappear. Aside from a few cars in varying stages of disrepair and the rain snapping on his jacket, Luke was alone on the road - the wind and rain had driven everyone indoors, or under plastic bags and bridges. 

Which was why a pang of alarm shot through him when he rounded a corner and saw a slight figure in a bright yellow jacket weaving it’s way shakily between the cracks in the pavement. Luke squinted – she was barefoot. 

A host of explanations welled up in his head, each more alarming than the last. He pulled over, one hand reaching for his cell phone, and steeled himself for the worst. 

_…Rey?_

She was pretty much the last person he’d expected. Her face was wan and pale. The dark circles under her eyes were far more prominent than the last time he’d seen her. Her legs were spattered with mud and she was shivering from head to toe. She looked as if a light breeze would knock her over. 

_I just got caught in the rain._

Somehow Luke bit his tongue - _none of my business none of my business_ \- and suppressed the urge to wrap his jacket around her shoulders. But the storm was getting worse.

_She can’t stay here._

So he offered her a ride. At first she’d gripped the frame with white knuckles, barely finding her balance as she lifted her feet shakily off the ground, and then flailed out, snaring his jacket and hanging on for dear life when he kicked off the curb. He tried his best to ground her, to keep the ride steady as her breathing slowly calmed, her grip on his jacket loosened, and she shifted closer to his chest. At some point her arm wrapped around his waist and she began to move with him, her touch sensitive and light. Soon the wind was at his back and her cheeks were tinged pink – he could almost feel her growing warmer.

Glancing down (when he dared), he caught the edge of a smile as she relaxed against him, all but in his arms. 

_Can we go faster?_

He hoped she didn’t feel his heart speed up. 

They got to talking after he locked his bike up – apparently her lack of shoes wasn’t an accident. Her usual pair had ‘been lost in the move.’

Luke’s jaw clenched. She’d said the same thing about her books, last night in his room. 

He sat carefully on the edge of the bed – he’d all but run after Rey that morning, so it was in a rather spectacular state of disarray. The sheets were in knots, the comforter was hanging off the foot of the mattress, and the pillows were piled together on the other side of the bed, save for his extra-large pillow, which was much flatter than…

Luke froze. Actually, _everything_ on his side was considerably more mussed than the other side. Which looked barely slept in.

He thought back to the early morning. The first thing he remembered was Kylo knocking on the door, and then a small, sharp elbow hitting his breastbone, jarring him out of a very pleasant drea – 

_Oh no._

Luke turned red as he realized that his hazy memory of a warm, slender body nestled against his chest, and the pair of long, smooth legs tangled up with his had not, in fact, been a dream. Her head had been tucked right underneath his chin, her soft hair smelling faintly of lavender and musk. Thinking back, he remembered quiet, even breath, and a small hand curling gently in the sheets. 

Luke’s chest grew tight as he pulled the pillow into his lap. It still smelled of her.

 

*

 

Rey splashed water on her face and reached for the soap, trying to organize her thoughts. She stood in front of the mirror in jeans and a bra, glaring at her reflection, Luke’s shirt folded neatly on the counter. 

_This is bullshit._

Somewhere in between brushing her teeth and combing her hair, her neck injury had wished her a loud GOOD MORNING, and Rey’s shock had slid right into rage. The half of her that didn’t want to rip Kylo’s head off just wanted to take a Vicodin and get back in bed. 

She could only imagine what Luke was feeling. They had both been on the end of their ropes – it was practically doctors’ orders to have a late, lazy morning. Rey was certainly willing. Waking up to golden dawn light, a soft bed and softer sheets, curling up in a warm ball – 

_\-- Curled on her side, Luke’s warm, solid chest at her back, their fingers twining as he gathered her close -_

_We could still be there, if Kylo hadn’t shown up._

Rey shook herself. _Get a grip, Rey._ She applied her face lotion and concealer – the shadows under her eyes were especially nasty this week, thanks to the long hours in the office – and hesitated over her makeup kit. _Why the hell did I even bring this?_

Well, she _was_ meeting Luke’s sister. She didn’t want to look like she’d just crawled out of bed. 

_She’ll probably be here soon,_ Rey thought. _I should hurry…_

Her fingers tangled in the soft cotton of Luke’s t-shirt.

There wasn’t enough time to say – to _explain,_ and to ask him what – 

Rey shook herself and reached for the mascara. 

 

*

 

Luke was glaring at the contents of his dresser when there was a soft knock on his door.

“Luke? Is it ok if I make coffee?” Rey asked, her voice muffled through the wood. 

“Hold on – “ He snatched up an undershirt and pulled it on hurriedly. And immediately regretted it as pain stabbed through his side, dropping him to one knee.

“Luke? Luke, are you all right?”

He grimaced and concentrated on hauling himself upright, trying to use his good side, with moderate success. Then his door creaked open. 

“Luke – “

Rey rushed to his side and wrapped her arm partly around his waist, her palm splayed flat, supporting his weak side, and draped his arm over her shoulders. She swayed slightly and leaned on the dresser for added leverage, gripping his fingers so hard it hurt. He couldn’t quite stop the sigh of pained relief as she took some of the weight off of his bad side.

“Ok, ready?” said Rey, her voice shaking. 

He gasped out something that passed for a ‘yes’, and they slowly stood and stumbled across the (thankfully short) distance to his bed. Rey helped lower him backwards, her face tight with worry. Luke ended up sprawled flat on his back on the end of the mattress, his eyes shut tight, breathing hard. 

_Where is she?_ he thought as she slid out from under his arm. He could feel her knees pressing against his side - _she must be kneeling_ \- but – 

Luke opened his eyes. She was leaning over him, her face inches from his, chest heaving, dark hair spilling around her face and ghosting over his skin. His breath caught as her eyes went wide and dark, the world shrinking to the depth of her gaze and the light touch of her thigh against his side. 

“Where does it hurt?” Rey asked quietly. He swallowed, his heart pounding.

“Just my side,” he said. “I moved too fast. My fault.” Rey shook her head and slowly withdrew, settling back onto her heels. Luke’s fingers caught in the sheets as he pushed down the urge to draw her back. 

“Don’t move,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”

Luke had propped himself up against the headboard by the time she returned with an ice pack. He patted his side gingerly, wincing at the touch.

“This happened to me a few times in college,” said Rey. She climbed up next to him and moved his hand away from his side. “I was a total mess for a while.”

“What happened?” asked Luke, distracted from the pain by the feeling of her hand on his wrist, her skin still a bit chilly from the ice. 

“The first one was a car accident,” said Rey, grimacing. She leaned closer and pressed the ice against his side. “Hmm…How’s that?”

“Good,” said Luke distractedly. She still hadn’t moved her hand. Rey pursed her lips, frowning a bit. 

“Did they give you a brace?”

“Just an ace bandage – It’s not broken, Rey.” 

“And I know it still hurts like hell,” she said dryly. She shook head, laughing a little at herself. “Finn all but attached himself to my ass when I did mine,” she said. 

“You don’t – “

“I know,” said Rey. She looked at him sternly. “But I was glad he was there.” 

Luke swallowed, suddenly grateful for the low light. 

“I don’t want to hover, but I would like to stick around. Just for a little bit.” Incredibly, she looked away.

“I’d be very grateful,” said Luke slowly.

As if he could refuse her anything.

“And – I wish there was more time, but I think I owe you an explanation. For Kylo.”

“He is not welcome here.”

The ice in his voice surprised him. Yes, it had been one hell of a fight at Leia’s anniversary, but up until the events of the morning Luke had always believed that the next time he spoke to his nephew both of them would at least be civil. And possibly apologetic.

Luke clenched his jaw hard, anger flaring as he remembered the scene in the living room – He could still feel the solid pull of the stun rod in his hand. 

_I can’t see you with him,_ he thought. It should be horrible, nauseating, even, to think of it. Maybe he just _couldn’t._ And then that look on his face…

“You know I didn’t know you were related, right?” Rey asked, after a tense silence. “He didn’t like talking about his family. I wasn’t even sure if his parents were alive.”

“I had no idea he was even dating anyone, much less, well, _you.”_

“I stopped asking, after awhile,” she said quietly. “There were no pictures, no…just nothing left over from his childhood, you know? I mean, I know he’s 33, but I still have a few – a few books – “ 

Her voice trailed off. 

“Rey?” 

“ – Anyway, he never mentioned you. Or his parents. So I didn’t know. And we were _living together._ You’d think it’d come up. I just…” She shook her head. “I didn’t know.”

“Today was the first time we’ve spoken in almost five years,” said Luke. “I think that Leia can probably tell it better than I can, but there were…” He cast around for the right words. “…Problems. I knew that he works at FO, but other than that…” He shook his head. 

“I never would have guessed,” said Rey, her voice barely audible. Luke looked at her, frowning.

“Guessed?” 

“That you were related. You’re – “ Rey tensed, the tips of her fingers digging into his skin. “You’re just – I’m sorry, Luke.”

“Why?” he asked, shaking his head. “Nobody made him come here, Rey. And he knew damn well that it wasn’t going to – that it would be pretty rough. It would’ve gotten ugly even if you _weren't_ here. And I’m glad that you were. Not for _that,_ I mean – “ _Crap. Crap. Crap._ It was Luke’s turn to look away. “I mean – “ 

_I mean I like waking up next to you._

Luke tensed as a small, soft hand cupped his cheek, and the mattress creaked softly as Rey edged closer to the headboard. He swallowed audibly, his pulse racing as he turned to face her. 

She was so close. 

“Rey – “

“I know.”

She closed the distance and kissed him. 

 

*

 

Ice flooded Rey’s veins at Luke’s surprised gasp. She pulled back immediately, her chest seizing painfully. 

“Sorry, I’m so sorry, I – “ 

She couldn’t look at him.

“I – I should go, Leia will be here soon – “

Luke took her hand.

“Rey.”

He moved the ice pack out of the way, his eyes never leaving her face, and tugged her hand gently. 

“Don’t go.”

She leaned into him, slowly this time, sighing as his fingers threaded in her hair, and pressed her lips gently to his.

 

*

 

Rey was warm and soft, nestled light as air against his shoulder, her lips ever-so-slightly chapped. _Winter air,_ Luke thought, his breath hitching as she slipped her tongue inside his mouth. He tasted peppermint, and wondered if he was still dreaming. 

Apparently not – in a dream, his side wouldn’t ache when she slid onto his lap.

But it was rather easy to ignore.

The knock on the door was less so. They jerked apart, Rey’s legs dangling over the edge of the bed, Luke feeling as though he’d run several miles.

“Crap,” Rey whispered. “That’s probably – “

His phone rang, the screen lighting up with his sister’s name. Rey stood gingerly as he picked it up and set it in speaker mode. 

“I’m at the door, Luke,” said Leia immediately. “Artoo’s going nuts – Down boy!”

There was a scuffling sound, and then an excited bark. 

“Coming…Just a second. Just finding a shirt.”

Rey smiled, her cheeks slightly pink. _No need,_ she mouthed. 

“Be right there,” he said, quirking an eyebrow at Rey. He hung up and stood as quickly as he could, crossing to the dresser. “All right, let’s try this again…” 

“I’ll…Hang on. I think putting on the undershirt made it flare up again?” Luke nodded, grimacing, some of the embarrassment returning. “I thought so…”

Rey pursed her lips and rummaged through his drawer. 

“Aha! I knew I’d seen you in one of these!” She pulled out a well-worn, blue flannel, button-down shirt. “Now you won’t have to raise your arms over your head. Finn figured this one out way before I did,” she said, by way of explanation. “Here.” She held it up, and helped him pull it on, one arm at a time. Her hands lingered on his shoulders, straightening out the seams and folding the collar. “Can you get the buttons?”

“Yes,” he said, rolling his shoulders a bit, wincing at the crack.

“Oh, you’re a bit stiff back here,” she said, prodding at a knot of muscle between his shoulder blades. 

“It’s been an interesting week,” he said wryly. 

“I might be able to help with that. When your side heals a little more,” said Rey. 

Luke swallowed. 

“I might take you up on that,” he said slowly. “But Leia’s probably waiting.”

“Oh. Yes. Right,” said Rey, stepping back. “Let’s go.”

 

***  
**

**GUEST ACCOMMODATIONS PART 2 ******

******* **

****

********

Leia was considering calling Luke again when the door creaked open. She let go of Artoo’s leash, smirking as the old Labrador almost knocked her brother over, bouncing up and down and licking everything he could reach. 

“Down Artoo! Sit!” Artoo cocked his head wryly, as though considering, and then sat, quivering with energy, tail thumping up a storm on the hardwood floor. “Good boy…” Luke knelt down next to the Lab and unhooked the leash, giving him a hug and a thorough ear rub. 

“Good morning Luke,” said Leia. “I brought breakfast. And coffee. You sounded like you needed it.” She set the Niima Café carry-out bag on the ground, and the cardboard tray with three cups of coffee on the side table next to the door. Luke gave Artoo a final pat and stood up carefully. Leia’s eyes narrowed as she caught the wince.

“You’re a saint, Leia,” said Luke. “Look, I’m sorry for calling you that early – “

Leia waved it off.

“You wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t an emergency,” she said. “And fighting with Ben is definitely an emergency.”

“It wasn’t exactly a fight,” said Luke, frowning. “But it might have gone that way. Oh – Here – “

Artoo bounced around him, and all but jumped on a slender brunette in a t-shirt and jeans, who was standing awkwardly next to the stairs. Her face lit up as the Lab sniffed and whuffed every inch of her that he could reach, his tongue lolling in a ridiculously doggy smile. 

“Hey you,” she said, extending her hand. “Are you Artoo?” 

The Lab huffed and wagged his tail. Encouraged, she bent and scratched his ears, watching him carefully. After a moment of careful consideration, Artoo snorted, shook himself, and licked her fingers enthusiastically.

Leia felt herself relax. 

“Leia, this is Rey – you spoke on the phone earlier. Rey, this is my sister, Leia Organa.”

“His _twin_ sister,” said Leia. She held out a hand. “It’s lovely to meet you.” Rey extricated herself from Artoo and wiped her palm on her jeans, smiling sheepishly. 

“It’s good to meet you, too,” she said. “I’d shake hands, but…” 

“Life of a dog owner,” said Leia, taking Rey’s be-slobbered right hand. “Hands are washable.”

Rey’s smile was a bit nervous, but she had a strong grip. And Artoo liked her. 

Luke clearly did, too. He eyed them both anxiously as they moved into the kitchen – Artoo trotting next to Luke, bumping possessively against his legs – and started dishing out the food, clearly itching to ask her something. 

Leia watched Rey carefully. It was clearly her first time in Luke’s kitchen – it took a bit of trial and error for the younger woman to find the silverware and napkins, and she stared in awe at the enormous coffee maker for almost a minute before she figured out where the water went. 

“I swear that thing is going to develop sentience one of these day,” said Leia, nodding at the gleaming array of buttons and dials. Rey grinned. 

“My office would kill for one of these,” she said. “Engineers,” she said, at Leia’s questioning look. “I think some of my coworkers would inject their coffee directly into their blood if they could.”

“Where do you work?” Leia asked. 

“Unkar Industrial – Well, unless they change the name,” said Rey, looking away. “We got bought out by First Order Incorporated a few months ago.” She got the machine running and leaned against the counter, her half-empty Niima Café coffee cup in hand. 

“Ben works there,” said Leia, frowning. Rey nodded.

“It’s been a bit nuts. The timing was…weird. It happened right after I moved in.“

“Into the building?” Leia asked, arching her elbow delicately.

“The apartment across the hall,” said Rey. “I – “ She squared her shoulders. “I’d been living on a friend’s couch for a month. After I left Kylo.”

Leia felt as though she had been slapped.

“You were dating Kylo?”

“Living with him, actually,” said Rey quietly. “Two years. It’s why he came here. Looking for me.”

“He found out that Rey was living around here,” said Luke, his voice carefully controlled. “Just not her exact address." He shook his head incredulously. "He wanted me to help him find her.” 

Rey laughed hollowly.

“I answered the door,” she said. “You should have _seen_ his face, Luke,” she said. “You know, in hindsight…” 

Leia took a long drink of her coffee. She was very glad that she was sitting down. 

“I didn’t know,” she said, after a long silence. She looked up and met Rey’s eyes steadily. “We’d have insisted on meeting you. Han too,” she said quietly. 

“He wouldn’t talk about you. He never mentioned Luke. Or – well – “ Rey shifted awkwardly. “I don’t really know what to say.”

“My son and I…” Leia pressed her fingers to her forehead. “We have not been on the best of terms for some time.” She gestured towards the chair next to her. “What happened? Start with why you were answering my brother’s door at 7 in the morning.”

Luke turned redder than she’d seen him in years.

“Ah – “ he started. “Now that is _very_ easy to explain…” 

“I’ve got this,” said Rey, looking rather pink. “I moved here about three months ago…”

 

*

 

Finn and Poe had wanted her to talk – had _tried_ to get her to talk a few days after she’d moved onto their couch. Supposedly it was good for you – something about digging the words out and looking at the shapes. And she’d tried. Really. She just never seemed to get much out – just a few vague, disconnected memories that sounded ridiculous (petty, almost) as soon as she spoke. But they’d been there from the start of her relationship with Kylo, had noticed how it was changing her.

She still felt sick when she remembered how she’d drifted away from them, how Kylo had eclipsed her world.

He’d been the only thing that she could see.

And now his _mother_ was asking. 

_How much do I say?_

 

*

 

Luke listened intently as Rey brought Leia up to speed. It was clear that she was editing out quite a bit – every few minutes her words would falter – but Leia was very definitely getting the picture. On the surface, his sister was as still and calm as a pool of water. Her ‘lawyer face’, he called it – a good disguise for clients. 

For everyone, actually, except for him. 

 

*

 

 _This is why lawyers don’t represent their relatives,_ Leia thought. _Objectivity is pretty much impossible._

It helped that Rey continued to call her son ‘Kylo.’ She could deal with the corporate shark Kylo Ren treating his girlfriend like trash, and then chasing her down when she wounded his pride. She could understand that man cutting his family out of his life – the mid-tier lawyer mother with the tiny, barely-in-the-black firm, the container-ship-captain father with the checkered past, and the eccentric uncle who all but lived in his books – all of them wrung out by a world that he wanted no part of. 

Not _Ben._

Guilt and worry spiked into near panic when Rey described the near-disaster on the cliff. 

“I’m all right. Mostly,” said Luke after Rey gave him a _look._ “Just have to rest for a bit.”

“Which, clearly, has not happened,” said Leia sharply. “…Through no fault of your own,” she said grudgingly. 

She made Rey repeat what happened when Kylo showed up three times, and then had Luke do the same. It was immediately clear to her that they would need to tread lightly. Kylo had no grounds to prosecute Luke, as he’d entered his Uncle’s home with the intent of escalating a domestic conflict and no one had been hurt. It also meant that Rey could not file charges against Kylo. While he’d expressed the desire to find her, at this level it could not legally be considered stalking. 

“You’ll both need to document the hell out of this,” Leia told them. “You were right to call me. And don’t worry. I know, I know…” she said, sighing at their incredulous stares. “I know you will anyway. Just stay vigilant. But not the obsessive kind of vigilant. All right?”

They both nodded, looking tired but determined.

“Ok, now that _that’s_ out in the open…Luke, are you up for a walk? I think Artoo needs to find a tree. And he’s been dying to see you.” 

A well-timed scratch at the door punctuated her statement. Luke’s eyes narrowed. He looked questioningly at Rey, who smiled a little, and nodded. 

“I can manage,” said Luke. “C’mere Artoo…” 

 

*

 

“Would you like some more coffee?” Rey asked, after an awkward silence. 

“I feel like that should be my line,” said Leia, her voice rough. “Maybe in another life…”

“I’m sor – “ Rey looked down. “I keep apologizing. I’m trying to stop.” 

She wondered what that ‘other life’ might have been like. 

“He wasn’t always like this,” said Leia. “He was a very sweet boy. Very sensitive, very – “ She shook her head. “He always had a bit of a temper. But then, so do I.”

“Luke mentioned that there was a falling out,” said Rey carefully. “You don’t have to say.”

“After what happened this morning?” Leia snorted. “No, you should hear this. It was five years ago at me and Han’s anniversary party – Bigger than it needed to be, in my opinion, a lot of coworkers, and friends of friends…This isn’t a large family. I think that Kylo thought that it needed ‘padding’.” Leia rolled her eyes. “He got into it with Luke…They never quite saw eye to eye.”

“I’m not exactly surprised,” said Rey. Leia grinned.

“Oh, they have a few things in common,” she said. “Ben – Kylo – picked a college based on it’s fine arts program – Creative writing. Really.” Leia smiled at Rey’s expression. “But he switched majors about halfway through his junior year. Gave it up, just like that. God _damn_ I was worried…”

“I never knew that,” said Rey. This was just flat-out _confusing._ “He barely _reads.”_ Leia nodded.

“He never said why, just switched to business and economics without a backward glance. He aced the curriculum, got hired by FO Inc. _months_ before he graduated, and he’s been climbing the corporate ladder ever since.”

“He seemed happy,” said Rey. “Happy with his job, I guess.” It was true – Kylo had always been at his most charming at company functions, and when discussing his work. She’d begun to see the results of his skills the rare times their paths crossed at work, and on the edges of conversations with her co-workers. “They really like him there.”

“So I gathered,” said Leia. “It was the same story five years ago. He was doing _extremely_ well, so what could I say? A bright, ambitious, successful son. Everything a mother could ask for. He even got Alastair Snoke to come to the party.” 

Rey flinched. She remembered Snoke, all right. 

“What happened?”

“Luke had just published his third book,” Leia continued. “The first two had done all right, but he was barely getting by – that’s why he moved out here in the first place. But the third…” Leia’s face lit up. “Hot _damn._ Things started going extremely well for him.”

 _“The Dark Cove?”_ Rey asked. Leia nodded.

“Massive success. And Ben was jealous, as you probably guessed. Didn’t stop him from trying to use Luke, though.”

“What do you mean?”

Leia’s lips tightened into a thin line.

“He introduced Luke to Snoke at the party. It did not go well,” she said grimly. “Oh, no, not like that, it was all perfectly civil. Snoke tried to hire Luke. Luke said no. And you’d think that would be the end of it.” Rey’s lip curled. 

_I can see where this was going._

“Ben confronted Luke after Snoke left. I was tidying up on the other side of the room, and I still heard it…” Her shoulders slumped. “Han thought he was going to have to get between them.”

“Shit."

“Exactly,” said Leia. “I’ve spoken with him a few times since then, but, well…” She sighed. “None of this is your fault, Rey,” she said. “And I don’t just mean that fight.”

“I know,” said Rey quietly, swirling the dregs of her mug.

They sat in surprisingly comfortable silence. Finally Leia grimaced at her cup.

“You know what? I would love some more coffee. And I think it’s past – Oh, God, it’s almost 1.”

“Lunch?” Rey asked, getting to her feet. 

“I vote we order out,” said Leia wryly. “If there’s anything in the fridge besides eggs I will eat this table. Now,” she said, cracking open the fridge to see for herself. “Tell me about work. Did you study engineering in school?”

“Yeah,” said Rey. “Mechanical, with a minor in electrical. I worked at an auto repair shop to pay the bills…”

 

*

 

Leia was on the phone with The Jade Tree, a nearby Chinese restaurant, when Luke got back. She waved him into the kitchen, where Rey was sketching out a flow chart in one of Leia’s notebooks. 

“Timeline,” she said. “Figured I’d do it now while it’s still fresh in my head.” She set the pen down. “How are you doing?”

“All right,” said Luke, pulling up a chair next to her. “How did…” He jerked his head at Leia, still on the phone and pouring over a take-out menu tacked to the cluttered corkboard on the kitchen wall.

“She told me about your fight with Kylo,” said Rey. She took a deep breath. “I’ve met Snoke. He’s an asshole. I’d even say that he’s probably a horrible person. And the First Order is just…I think you did the right thing.” 

“I’d do it again in a minute,” he said. “Rey – Thank you.”

“I – “

“They’ll be here in twenty minutes,” said Leia, hanging up the phone. “Now,” she said, sitting across from Luke and Rey. “We have some catching up to do.”

*

 

They talked into the evening, moving back and forth between the living room, the kitchen, and eventually Luke’s office where the television was, artfully hidden inside a cabinet sandwiched between two crammed bookshelves. Leia grilled Rey extensively about her college years and some of the high points of her life after (the Kylo-less parts). Luke threw a pillow at Leia when she kept coming back to the subject of ‘contemporary dorm life’.

“She’s living vicariously through you. Ignore her,” he said, blocking Leia’s countering throw. 

Luke also asked to meet BB as soon as possible. 

“If Finn and Poe are ok with it,” he said, scratching behind Artoo’s ears. The Lab had claimed the spot next to Luke on the ancient futon in the office after the second round of Chinese food arrived. He laid his head in Luke’s lap and promptly dropped off to sleep - his only contribution to the discussion from then on was rumbling doggy dreams. Rey squished in between Artoo and Leia, laughing at the lapful of dog hair that she was accumulating. 

“I’ll ask them, but I think they’d love that,” Rey said. She’d texted them after lunch, confirming that, yes, she was alive, and that she couldn't talk now, but that Things had happened, and she needed to see them both on Monday. 

“Sometimes they bring BB on runs – she loves it.” 

“Artoo was quite a trooper in his time,” Luke said fondly. The old dog’s ears perked up. 

“I can tell,” said Rey. She snuggled closer.

Eventually Leia ushered Artoo off of her brother’s lap. 

“Early day tomorrow,” she said, yawning. “Last week our caseload doubled – it must be a full moon. Come on, you.” 

She turned to Rey as Luke hunted around the apartment for Artoo’s leash.

“It was good meeting you, Rey, even in circumstances like this,” said Leia, leaning a bit closer, her eyes flicking back to Luke. “Good luck,” she whispered. 

“Um…Thank you?” said Rey.

“Found it!” said Luke. “Sorry boy, time to go…”

“Call me this week, all right?” said Leia. 

“Of course,” said Luke. 

“Show me out?” Leia asked. “I keep messing up that death trap of an elevator…”

“Sure,” said Luke. “I’ll be right back, Rey,” he said, catching her eye. 

Rey hurried upstairs as soon as the door shut. She gathered up the clothes she’d left in the bathroom and headed to her apartment. She dropped off her things and, after a moment of hesitation, grabbed a towel, a change of clothes, and some underwear. 

She made it back across the hall before Luke got back and started clearing off the kitchen table, using the time to quiet her thoughts. Or she tried to, at any rate. Luke knocked on the door just as she finished loading the dishwasher. 

“Hey,” she said, unlatching the door. “Welcome back!”

“I survived,” Luke said. “Oh – you didn’t have to do that,” he said, surveying the much neater kitchen.

“You and Leia got dinner, so it’s only fair I tidy up a bit,” said Rey. “No problem.” She tossed the last empty paper plate into the trash. “I’m really glad I met Leia,” she said. “Even if it was for, well, _that.”_

“It’s been very – a lot happened today,” he said quietly. Luke stood very still, hands on the back of one of the kitchen chairs, watching her intently. Warmth blossomed in Rey’s core, chasing the fatigue away. 

“Yes, it did,” she said, leaning against the counter. 

This time he came to her, crossing the floor slowly, every movement deliberate, and paused a breath away. She reached out, placed his hands on her waist, and stepped into his warmth. 

It was different standing up. Luke wasn’t much taller than she was, so she didn’t have to crane her neck to run her lips along his, quick and teasing, when he pulled her in close. She felt his smile against her cheek, along with the pleasant roughness of his beard. And like this she didn’t have to worry (much) about his injury. 

She tugged on his shirt, urging him closer. Luke’s arm snaked up her back, tracing light, shivering lines along her ribs. Rey gasped, rallied, captured his mouth with hers, and found herself hanging onto his shirt for leverage as his other arm snaked around her side and lifted her onto the counter. Rey wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and Luke stepped closer, bracketed by her thighs. The kiss grew rough and wet. Rey trembled as her fingers twisted in blue flannel, and fought down the urge to wrap her legs around his waist. 

“Rey…” Luke whispered against her mouth.

Rey swallowed, her fingers tightening. She shut her eyes, tried to think. A shiver that had nothing to do with desire twisted in her gut. Luke felt her shudder, and relaxed his hold.

They hung in limbo for a long moment, and then eased apart, leaning against the counter, slowly catching their breath. Finally, Rey spoke.

“Luke, I – “ 

“It’s all right,” he said. 

“Are you going to say that that was a mistake?” Rey whispered. Luke’s fingers twined in hers. 

“Never.”

“…Luke?”

“Hmm?”

“It might be awhile before I can get a bed.”

“Yes,” said Luke, almost before she finished the sentence.

“…What?”

“Yes,” he said. She could practically feel his smile. “You can stay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Han in this universe worked his way [up the hawse pipe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawsepiper) from 'able seaman' to captain on various merchant ships, so he wasn't home a lot when Ben/Kylo was a kid - sometimes he'd ship out for months on end :(  
> 2\. The 'Alastair' in 'Alastair Snoke' is of course 100% homage to [this Alastair from SPN. ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JtSsb8eV5E)  
> 3\. That wasn't a 'discretion shot'...No nookie for our intrepid heroes. YET.  
>  **4\. Edit 2, 10pm 7/10:** I've cleaned this up a bit - syntax and phrasing mostly, the plot is the same :)


	8. Two Nights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey and Luke get comfortable. Meanwhile, Kylo's efforts to break Rey hit a new low. But then, she's used to people underestimating her.

Rey stared at her computer screen, the spreadsheet and linked failure data histogram blurring as she tried to focus on her work. 

_I should have taken the day off,_ she thought, wincing as pain flared in the back of her neck. The ibuprofen she’d been gulping since she woke up was having about as much effect as tic tacs. Finn was in his downtown office for the week…Which was probably just as well. They had a lot to discuss, and she really, _really_ didn’t want to get into the particulars of her weekend while she was at work. Max was fond of saying that the office walls didn’t _need_ to have ears – the cubicle dividers offered about as much privacy as tissue paper.

So she’d been IM-ing Finn over the First Order’s private messaging client since she’d arrived at her desk, laboring over each word (rumors of the First Order monitoring employee internet activity abounded), and minimizing the conversation box whenever footsteps neared her cubicle, or she spotted a flicker of movement in the cosmetics mirror she’d mounted next to her monitor. Many an engineer had avoided an awkward conversation concerning inappropriate internet use with such mirrors. Rey always rolled her eyes at the stories – who the hell had _time_ to yack on Facebook during business hours?

But is _was_ embarrassing to find out that a coworker had been standing behind your chair for a solid minute, waiting for you to notice them. And startling. Her coworkers were still teasing her about the first time Max had surprised her. 

_You scream one time…_

Today she was getting a lot of use out of it, and not just because she didn’t want her cubicle neighbors to get an earful (or eyeful) of TMI about her personal life. Kylo and the Knights were in the building, and from what Max had said, they’d been tearing the department a new asshole since 8 in the morning. By noon Rey had three IM windows open, and was bouncing back and forth between a very worried Finn, her stressed-out section manager, and Max, the newly anointed tech lead for the Archon Map project as of about 9 in the morning, the previous lead having been unceremoniously fired at 8:30. 

Kylo hadn’t been sighted on her floor yet, but his almost-but-not-really boss Armitage Hux had been in the Engineering VP’s office for three hours, and as Finn had said, discussions between tech and finance leads usually meant _budget_ discussions. Which, of course, Rey’s entire team interpreted as _layoffs._

Lily the recent college hire had been bouncing from cubicle to cubicle all day, soaking in more rumors, finally plopping down into the extra chair by Rey’s desk, pleading for reassurance, her eyes huge behind a pair of extremely strong glasses. 

“I’ll be the first to go,” she said mournfully (and a tad too loudly for Rey’s taste). “I’ll – “She slumped over her laptop. “I just got my own place!”

“You’ll be fine,” said Rey tiredly, rubbing the back of her neck. “These things are always rough, but there’s usually a lot of overreaction. We’re short staffed as it is. It wouldn’t make any sense to lay _any_ of us off.” She wound up collaborating with Lily rather frequently, her being the second-most-junior engineer working on Archon Map. “And the priority on this thing just hit the roof. We’ll be drowning in work, but it’ll be, well, _work.”_ She rubbed her eyes and looked at the clock again. _3:30? Come on…_ Rey was meeting Finn at 5, both her and Luke agreeing that their usual evening runs were out for the time being. _Assuming I don’t get stuck here,_ she thought, the memory of the previous week – and weekend – fresh in her mind.

…Though the latter was considerably more prominent. 

_I should have taken the day off._

 

*

 

She’d almost forgotten to set the alarm. Luke, used to keeping odd hours, usually didn’t bother. She’d nestled under the covers while Luke turned off the lights downstairs, work most definitely the last thing on her mind. She lay on her side, facing the door, acutely aware of both every small noise Luke made as he padded through his end-of-day routine, and the well-worn softness of his shirt sliding over her bare skin. Each small shift of her body prompted a light caress, a ghost of a touch. It also seemed to be slipping off her shoulders and riding up her thigh much more often than the previous evening, the rougher drag of Luke’s sheets against her hips teasing her with the thought of how good the cool cloth would feel around her body without the shirt in the way. 

The suddenly uncomfortable, unnecessary shirt. 

Rey squeezed her eyes shut and wrapped her arms around herself, running her hands slowly up and down her arms. A distant memory – _an embrace, warm skin on hers, the thrum of breath and blood filling her senses_ – flew free.

 _How long had it been?_ Her last night -- _no, everything_ \-- with Kylo didn’t count. 

The footsteps grew louder. Rey’s fingers twisted in the cloth and warmth. She wondered if she dared.

But she tugged the hem down and scooted into the middle of the bed when Luke returned, flushing as his eyes immediately jumped to her face and form, her legs tangled up in rumpled sheets, her hair and garment disheveled and loose. Luke’s breath hitched sharply as their eyes met.

“Hey,” she said quietly. “All set?” 

Luke nodded, his gaze lingering, and turned slowly away to hang up his bathrobe on a hook in the closet. Rey leaned back against the headboard and watched him out of the corner of her eye. 

Like the previous evening, he wore loose pajama pants and a light undershirt, despite the space heater down the hall more than making up for the gaps in the window casement. She was certainly warm enough…And if he was aiming for modesty, the thin stretch of cloth did absolutely nothing to hide the definition in his shoulders, or the wiry strength in his limbs. Rey tensed, a hot flush blossoming in her core.

“When do you have to get up?” Luke asked, sitting awkwardly on the edge of the bed. There was almost three feet of space between them. Rey blinked, momentarily confused. 

_Oh. Work._

“Uh – 6:00,” she said. “Yeah, I know...” She smiled as Luke quirked an eyebrow. “Traffic can get pretty nasty, and usually things start up at the office around 7, and I like to be there when it happens. Rather not get a big pile of drama dumped on my head. And it’s just gotten worse since the – well, you know.” 

“I was about to ask about that,” said Luke, fiddling with the clock radio on the nightstand. “Do you think that Ben – that _Kylo_ is going to give you any trouble?” Rey frowned.

“I’m not sure,” she said. “But I’m going to have to deal with him eventually. Don’t worry,” she said, turning to face him. “It’s work. I’m pretty much attached at the hip to one of my coworkers these days – and in meetings half the time. Lots of people around. And Kylo wouldn’t do anything to run his image.” She snorted. “You should hear the FO guys talk…”

Luke smiled sadly and pulled the covers back. 

“That sounds like him,” he said. “But Rey – Call me if something happens.” He climbed into bed, and took her hand. “Anything.” 

Warmth unfurled inside Rey’s chest. She leaned in before her brain could object, molding her body to his, one arm curling around his back as she shut her eyes and _breathed._ Luke murmured something into her hair, his voice low and deep in his chest, shuddering through her bones. An arm circled her, his hand coming to rest, warm and firm, at the small of her back. Rey’s breath stuttered as Luke pulled her close, his lips ghosting across hers. She gripped his shoulder in response and drew him down with her. 

They lay on their sides, facing each other. Rey reached out and ran her fingers through his hair, down his cheek, skirting his jawline, the tips coming to rest on his lips. Luke shut his eyes, his breath shaky as she drew the pad of her thumb across his bottom lip. 

“Rey…” he whispered. It was her turn to shiver as Luke’s hand slid up her thigh, resting just under the hem of her shirt. She swallowed, her heart thudding as he traced firm circles on her skin.

“Luke – I – “ 

She didn’t want to stop. She wanted to move that hand from her hip to her breast, to taste his name on her tongue and melt into his heat. She wanted – 

“I want to do this right.” Her voice was quiet. _Did he hear me?_

Luke smiled _that smile,_ his eyes impossibly blue. 

“You _do_ have to get up in…hmm…six hours?” he murmured, low and playful. “Not enough time…”

“Not nearly enough time,” said Rey, laughing. “And we’re injured. As luck would have it.”

Luke groaned and flopped onto his back with exaggerated frustration. 

“You know what?”

“What?” asked Rey, resting her head against his shoulder.

“Sometimes I wonder if the universe has a sense of humor.”

Sleep came slowly, fortunately urged on by the sheer physical strain she’d been under all day, and only after Luke’s breath slowed, the tension gripping him faded, and his form relaxed against her, loose-limbed and peaceful. Rey lay on her side and watched the rise and fall of his chest, just barely visible in the cool light coming through the blinds, and for the first time in five years considered calling in sick.

 

*

 

“Rey?”

Lily’s voice pulled her back to the present. She cleared her throat and smiled wanly. _Focus. You’ve got an hour and a half to go._

“Now, have you got the circuit analysis done? We’ve – Hang on…” Her inbox pinged. “Aw crap…”

“What?” asked Lily, tensing.

“Hux called a meeting in…Fifteen minutes. Looks like everyone…” she mused, scanning the invite list. She paused, her eyes fixed on the end of the list.

“What is it?” asked Lily, peering at her worriedly. Rey swallowed.

“You’re on here too.” Lily paled and pulled up her email. 

“No subject,” she said. 

“Heard from John yet?” Lily shook her head. “Then bring your laptop,” said Rey, plastering a smile across her face. “We need to stay on IM. This is probably just admin stuff...” She got up and headed to the washroom, her mouth set in a grim line. 

She had a bad feeling about this.

 

*

 

Kylo and all six Knights were there. Of course they were. And from the way that Kylo and Hux were eying each other, they were there to keep the peace. Or at least make sure that Kylo came out on top.

 _You’d think that Acquisitions and Finance would get along,_ Rey thought wryly. She had to give Hux credit – he was one of the only First Order executives who saw through Ren’s bullshit. Of course, he tended to fight back with his own _special_ brand of bullshit. Which was just fine with Rey. She figured that the more time the two executives spent taking potshots at each other, the less time they’d have for doing the same thing to Engineering. 

Oddly, the FO execs were already seated, and not in a cluster, like usual. They had spaced themselves out around the table, forcing the Unkar engineers to pick out seats in the gaps between them. Rey hurried towards a block of open seats adjacent to the door, Lily following. She settled herself carefully and pulled out her laptop, her face carefully blank.

Two seats away, Kylo leaned back in his chair, his face a smooth mask of professional interest.

“How was your weekend?” he asked. Only someone who’d known him as long as Rey would be able to spot the malice filling his voice.

“Fine,” said Rey coolly, looking up briefly from her laptop screen – just enough for courtesy. The last thing she wanted was to drag her team into this. “Busy.” 

Kylo’s eyes narrowed. 

“I’m sure,” he said, dropping his voice. “You _do_ look rather tired...” 

“What is this meeting about, Mr. Ren?” Lily asked, oblivious to the tension. 

“Program administration,” said Kylo without looking at her. He caught Rey’s eye, the edge of his mouth twisted up into a smirk. Rey ignored him, turned to the younger woman, and pointed out a blinking column on the data readout. 

“Keep an eye on that one,” she said quietly. “Ping me if this goes over 600…” 

Hux cleared his throat and got to his feet, sharply tugging down the sleeves of his crisp suit jacket.

“Now, if everyone’s all settled in, we can get started.” There was a low rumble of assent, and a few nods. “Excellent. Now…” The red-haired man stepped behind the podium and reached for the laser pointer. “As I am sure many of you are aware, there has been some restructuring going on in this company. I called this meeting to discuss the path forward – Busy times are ahead, and I’m sure you all want to get the jump on this as soon as possible,” he said. 

Hux brought up the next slide – quarterly profits versus manpower for the high-priority programs. 

Rey’s stomach lurched as she spotted the line for Archon Map – overhead was in the red, hours were up, and the work…

Five messaging windows popped up on her laptop.

_Well, shit._

“…As you can see, the leads will be redistributing contract hours to keep the program in the black...”

The first one was from Max, typing furiously on his laptop three seats away. 

**M. Ackbar:** You’re still on the prgrm don’t wry

Rey’s shoulders relaxed somewhat. She hadn’t been exaggerating when she’d told Lily that they were understaffed – it wouldn’t make sense to…

 **R. Smith:** who else

Her boss hesitated over his keyboard. Kylo drummed his fingers on the table, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. 

**M. Ackbar:** Me and lily 

Rey blinked. That had to be a typo. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Max shaking his head, carefully not looking in her direction. Before she could pound out a response to the _extremely not funny_ joke, Hux’s voice cut into her thoughts.

“Please refer to your technical leads for the restructuring details. Now, for a top-level perspective…”

He pulled up the org chart for the Archon Map program. There was the standard cluster of corporate liaisons, finance officers, the quality team, and data security support, but…

Rey recoiled, and swallowed the barrage of very inappropriate words that were screaming to get out. Instead she messaged Lily, not trusting herself to keep her cool if she spoke to her directly. 

**R. Smith:** meet in max’s office after mtng  
**L. Evans:** _L. Evans is typing…_  
**R.Smith:** we’ll be ok

 

*

 

Rey was out of her seat as soon as Hux ended the meeting, all but dragging Lily with her into the hallway. She’d spotted Kylo rapidly packing his briefcase, his eyes fixed on her face.

 _Looking for weakness,_ she thought, a fresh wave of rage surging up inside of her. They made it halfway down the hall before Kylo and Max caught up with them. 

“Ms. Smith?” Kylo called, falling in alongside her. “I’d like a word.” He turned to Max. “I’d like that report on my desk by tomorrow morning, please.” 

Rey’s boss nodded, his face carefully blank, and gestured to Lily to follow him.

“Come to my office after you’re done here,” he said, eyes flicking between her and Kylo. Rey nodded, giving Lily what she hoped was a reassuring smile. 

Rey stepped off to the side of the hallway, pointedly ignoring his efforts to draw her into an empty office. She planted her feet shoulder width apart, and stood as straight as she could manage with a computer bag slung over her shoulder. Kylo leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest, smirking. 

“Interesting timing,” she said through clenched teeth. Kylo’s smirk broadened.

“Pardon?” he asked, eyes wide and innocent. “Forgive me for thinking that you could handle a little extra responsibility.” 

Rey’s face burned. She breathed in deeply, taking a moment to compose herself.

“I can,” she said coolly. “With the right resources. Three engineers and a two-month deadline is not the right resources.” He shrugged, loose-limbed and smug.

“Submit a requisition form,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll have time.” 

“And since when are you involved in anything even remotely related to engineering?” Rey snapped. 

“I’m broadening my horizons,” said Kylo. “It’s good to be well-rounded. And I was informed that Archon Map had an exceptional team…A little extra time shouldn’t be a problem for someone with your work ethic…” He leaned in closer. “It might tip your work-life balance a bit, but...” His voice dropped low, trickling malice into her ear. “I’m sure you can handle it. You clearly have a bit too much time on your hands.”

“You…” Rey’s fingers dug into her computer bag strap. Somehow she grounded herself, stood up straighter. “If you will excuse me, _Mr. Solo,_ I have a meeting.”

Kylo’s face twisted. His hands shook at his sides, clearly barely holding himself in check. Rey waited. 

He turned and left without a word.

 

*

 

An hour later Max, Lily, and Rey had a rudimentary attack plan. Since the three of them would be handling a workload meant for six or nine, efficiency was key.

“At least we’re getting overtime,” said Rey, half-collapsed over a pile of schematics. Max snorted. 

“Don’t jinx it,” he said. “They’re imposing limits on that over in the Eravana program.”

“Archon is a higher priority though, right?” asked Lily. 

“Higher profile, too,” said Max grimly. 

Rey knew what that meant: Fuck up, and you’re on the street. 

She and Lily walked in silence back to their offices.

“So we basically hang in here for two months, and then everything goes back to normal, right?” 

“Right,” said Rey. It was only half a lie.

She left work at 11. She’d cancelled her dinner with Finn and Poe at 6 once it was clear that she’d be working into the night. 

And told Luke not to wait up. 

_Overtime. Think of the overtime._ At least she’d be pulling in a larger paycheck. Her student loan debt sure as shit needed the extra help. 

But that didn’t seem to matter when she staggered down the hall, dizzy with fatigue, and the light under Luke’s door was out. 

She collapsed onto her air mattress after the world’s fastest shower, her hair wet, her sandwich going uneaten on the counter.

_Two months…_ Her last thought before she blacked out was that Kylo had _severely_ underestimated her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Rey, unfortunately, cannot yet prove that there's a link between what Kylo just did and the events of the weekend...Because if she can, he'd be in big trouble.  
> 2\. Really, in real life bullshit like that gets you fired.  
> 3\. She's brushing off the resume, but jobs are a bit thin on the ground at the moment, and she can't afford to just bail. And she's thinking of her references.  
> 4\. Kylo, the little shit that he is, has two goals: Get Rey to quit, and screw up her relationship with Luke.  
> 5\. Leia needs to give him a talking to.


	9. Coffee and Nachos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey deals with her rather challenging work situation, and hopes that the light at the end of the tunnel isn't an oncoming train. Luke considers the past (especially the parts with Ben/Kylo), wonders about the future, and has a serious talk with Finn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaack, sorry for the long time between updates!!! School and the need to tread lightly (very lightly) in this and the next chapter (for reasons, which you will see soon) made for a bit of a delay.
> 
> ...And given what happened with 'Guest Accommodations' - that >7k words chapter ffff - I capped this one at around 4k. The rest of the *Rey's Weekend* plot arc will be in the next chapter ;)

It got bad. More accurately it _started out_ bad and slid into worse without much ado at all. Weekends became something that happened to other people. Rey was increasingly reminded of her third year of college…except besides the late nights, homework, deadline panic, and caffeine toxicity, she couldn’t do it curled up in bed in her pajamas, noise-cancelling headphones on, crunching numbers while dorm life buzzed around her. Nope. No, she was in and out of meetings all day, every day, in ‘business casual’ clothes and uncomfortable heels, trying to wring data out of the techs _and_ train Lily. 

_Poor Lily,_ Rey thought. The younger woman had only been there for a few months before she got thrown into the professional equivalent of a meat grinder. _At least I had time to get to know everyone._

Seeing Kylo’s smug grin _every damn day_ was just the spitball on top of the vomit sundae. 

Rey tasked Lily with a fair amount of the more repetitive data analysis, and sent her around on fact-finding missions, that _just happened_ to coincide with the nastier Kylo meetings. Both she and Max figured that the 22-year old didn’t need to deal with an exec with an axe to grind on top of everything else. Kylo’s reputation preceded him. 

_It’s what I would have done anyway,_ she thought. _Get her out there, talking to people, balance it out with a solo task…_ Rey winced internally.

 _Face it, you’re worried,_ she thought. Lily, while smart as hell, was extremely shy, and about as insecure as a new college grad could be. It had taken a lot to get her top open up. And the last thing that she wanted was for their new boss to tear the junior engineer down out of spite. 

So she made sure to include the First Order’s Finance team on Lily’s list of contacts. 

Sending Lily to talk to Hux might have _seemed_ like putting her in the line of fire, but Rey knew Kylo. She honestly couldn’t remember the number of times he’d come home fuming at what he considered Hux’s latest attempt to undermine his authority…all of which sounded to Rey, once she dug through the rage shrouding the event, like reasonable (if possibly snarky) counter arguments. Of course, she knew that in the business world, it wasn’t always about _what_ you said, but _how_ you said it. 

_Doesn’t mean he’s wrong,_ she thought. 

Furthermore, Kylo had made his contempt for everyone working under Hux painfully clear, to the point that he barely bothered to learn any of their names, so even if Lily’s name and work were mentioned at some point by the Finance crew, Kylo would be vastly unlikely to register the implications. It was also unlikely that he’d spot her in that corner of the building; for someone who loathed Armitage Hux as much as Kylo, Rey had noticed that her ex went out of his way to avoid him. 

Rey wondered if it was fear.

Even better, Lily keeping Hux in the loop helped give an alternate perspective on what Kylo was telling management. The Finance lead was all about numbers, deliverables, budgets, and, better, results. Lily spoke his language – or at least the ‘numbers’, part, and Hux was one of those men who was more easily swayed by hard data, rather than spin. 

The numbers would show exactly what they had to work with. Even if the team failed spectacularly, the money people would know the real reasons why.

Rey’s plan began to bear fruit in the third week of the ‘personnel redistribution.’ Kylo began spending more time coordinating with Finance and his usual wheelhouse, Acquisitions, than breathing down her neck. The near-constant meetings slid into a couple of daily, fast, status updates and telecons. The shouting matches – thankfully remaining behind closed doors – between Hux and Kylo escalated, but it seemed that Hux considered it an expected (if tiresome) part of dealing with Kylo. Lily even developed a rather good working relationship with Hux’s secretary, Dopheld Mitaka, a rather tense individual who really -- _really_ \-- appreciated her punctuality and the heaps of advance warning about the latest program time crunch that passed to him, so that he could prioritize Hux’s meetings. Not to mention her ‘Kylo sightings’, so that he could gird his proverbial loins. 

But even _without_ Kylo on their collective asses, it was all that they could do to keep their heads above water. Rey stumbled into a routine that kept her going, though it didn’t leave room for much else. She’d wake up at 5, get to work at 6:30, plan the day out with Max and Lily until 8, and then hit the data, avoiding Kylo as much as possible until the 5pm status update. Everything after 6 was just up to fate. 

Wash, rinse, repeat.

And in the meantime, Rey’s poker face was getting _amazing._

 

*

 

The good days ended before eight at night. A pattern developed where she’d usually get two of those a week, by what she could only assume was divine intervention. She’d drop off her computer bag in her apartment, grab some leftovers out of the fridge (she tended to do the weeks cooking ahead of time, and just reheat everything), head across the hall, and all but fall onto Luke’s couch, the rant that had been building up inside her all day collapsing under the weight of her fatigue. It would seem a small, fragile thing, then, and sink away into the soft cushions and warm lamplight, and the sharp crackle of something frying on the stove…That half the time wound up burnt beyond recognition, because Luke was curled up with her instead of watching the pan. 

They talked, certainly, though Rey could never recall the exact details the next morning – just that Luke’s book was going well, that his side had healed enough to pull her legs across his lap and tuck her against his shoulder, and that she felt better after five minutes on the couch than after thirty minutes of ranting in the office break room. 

It was like waking up after days of sleepwalking. 

Rey woke up in other ways, as well. Resting against his shoulder, or halfway across his lap, it was entirely too easy to slip her hand up to his shoulder, sharply aware of every crease and run in the old flannel, just playing with the fabric, soft and warm under her fingers. And to slowly slide her palm around him to press between his shoulder blades, and allow herself to feel the shifting muscle and bone, warm and solid through the worn cloth. 

Luke seemed intent on distracting her, too. Between his voice and the firm hand resting on her thigh, sometimes a comforting weight, grounding her with a quick squeeze that made her forget her scratchy work trousers and aching feet, other times tracing slow circles into her skin, driving the remains of her day out of her head, focusing on anything else was almost impossible. Until he remembered what he was doing, and moved it back to her knee. 

That was when Rey would get to her feet, pull him up with her, and attempt to salvage dinner, usually a combination of the leftovers she’d brought, and ‘some kind of meat’ from Luke’s fridge. 

As reluctant as she was to leave, Rey did not want to subject Luke to her 5 am wakeup time, and the ear-splitting alarm that came with it. Especially after it slid to 4 when the quarterly progress report came due. So she’d say goodnight when it passed 10. Usually. Unless she found some excuse to linger a bit, such as finding a sheath of Luke’s notes stuffed between the couch cushions. Then she’d notice that a page was missing, which of course they had to find, and would look everywhere except his bedroom. Then it was back to her place, her air mattress, and oblivion.

Those were the only nights she could manage a proper sleep. The rest of the time, she woke long before her alarm, lines and numbers marching fretfully through her head, clicking into place, or not. Strategies for the day’s match formed in the gray dawn light, which came later each day as the Fall slid into November. 

 

*

 

She got the weekend off (thanks, she suspected, to Hux) four weeks into ‘The Gauntlet’, as Lily had dubbed it – a nickname that was spreading across the department, thanks to Dopheld. 

“He’s an admin. It’s his job to deliver bad news,” said Rey, unable to keep the smile off of her face. It was Friday, and nothing was going to keep her here after 6. She had _plans._ “And to talk to other admins. Of course it was going to get around.” Lily grinned back, her mind already out the window. 

“The Order guys think it’s funny,” she said cheerily. “And kinda ominous. I think most of them are kinda impressed, actually.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. That we’re still here.” 

Rey smirked. 

“Good,” she said. _I love it when people underestimate me…_ “But still…” She sighed, and reached for her half-empty mug of cold coffee. “This pace…It’s not sustainable. I mean, a sprint to the finish is one thing, but you can’t run a marathon that way. And the three of us just _can’t_ keep this up indefinitely. Imagine doing this for a year. Or more.”

Lily fell silent. 

“I know what you mean,” she said quietly. “I keep missing my Mom’s calls…and I’ve maybe seen James twice in the last month.” 

“But you’re going to see him tonight, right?” Rey asked, smiling slightly. Lily had been dating James since her senior year of college. He lived in a high-rise downtown, and was – according to Lily’s gushing description – staggeringly handsome, intelligent, and winning at life after college. 

“Yes, thank God,” sighed Lily. “I’ve been practically sleeping here. We haven’t – “ Lily flushed. “We haven’t _seen_ each other in so long.” 

Somehow Rey kept a straight face.

“Well, you’ll have some time, then,” she said seriously. “I, for one, am going to lock _this_ in my desk. No leash for the next two days.” Rey held up her company phone, her face twisting with disgust. Lily grinned.

“I am so, so glad that they haven’t given me one of those…But what are your plans for the weekend? Are you going to see Finn?”

“Yeah,” said Rey. _Among other things…_ “And I have to get out of here by, oh, 6 at the latest? I’m getting stuff delivered.” She had to get to sleep early too, if she was going to be well-rested for Saturday. 

Rey had made some hurried plans with Finn on Thursday to make one last trek to Niima Cove before the bay iced over. And Luke was very definitely invited...

“Finally moving in for real, huh?” Lily asked, dragging her back to the present.

Rey nodded. She’d raided Amazon during her lunch hour on Monday, and ordered an actual bed; her attempts at bulking up her air mattress with pillows were simply _not_ working. And her neck did not appreciate it. 

As for her _other_ options…

 _It’s too soon,_ she thought, with a pang. _Way too soon._

 

*

 

Rey went straight from her last meeting to her car, and made it back to her apartment in record time. She actually wound up with an extra half-hour to clean a bit before the furniture arrived. ‘Never put a rug on a dirty floor’ – something her mother used to say, whenever they had to pack up and move. 

She’d ordered a couple of those, too, and some curtains. The walls were thick – steel and cement – but the years had worn cracks in the wooden floors and roof. The coal-fired boiler room was rather poorly insulated (according to Poe, who had snuck in for a quick look), so a lot of heat was lost before the hot water even made it to the rest of the building. 

Consequently, Rey’s apartment was plagued by nearly constant drafts. It was only going to get worse, too – Winter was fast approaching. It was barely November, and she was already wearing socks to bed. Carpets, curtains, and wall hangings (like the ones in Luke’s place) would help keep the heat in. 

_Like a castle,_ she thought with a smile, wringing out her mop. All those tapestries in the history books weren’t just for decoration. Of course, having an actual bed with actual blankets wouldn’t hurt.

Rey stayed out of the way when the movers showed up, other than a couple of quick instructions. It wasn’t much. The couch went perpendicular to the far wall, the squishy leather armchair close by. She sank down into the chair with a happy sigh, curling her toes on the thick, braided rug as they dragged her bed and mattress up the stairs. She turned slightly, and took in the unobstructed, soaring view out of the floor-to-ceiling windows. 

_Quite a change,_ she thought, zipping up her hoodie and tucking her legs up to her chest. She’d cracked a window open, so the air had that light, crackling, chill that heralded the last days of Fall. The light had changed too, from those first golden, sweltering days. It had gone soft and white, a muted twilight, and a gray sky that filled the space, promising snow. Even now, the wind stirred outside the walls, testing the glass panes. 

_A few more weeks, and we won’t be able to run outside,_ she thought, a warm lump forming in her throat. _Maybe even a few days…_

“All right ma’am?” One of the movers called down, startling her out of her reverie.

“Be right up…”

Rey took a quick look upstairs – just a check to make sure everything was where it should be. 

_Perfect._

She tipped them, unpacked some of her other purchases, and made herself at home.

 

*

 

The supermarket was packed with people. It seemed to Luke that half the city was stocking up for Thanksgiving early. Then again, he usually went to the small market on the edge of the Industrial District, so maybe the chaos was normal.

 _Either that,_ Luke thought as he elbowed his way through the aisles, smiling at the skirmish over at 15-pound turkey by the poultry counter. _Or there are a lot of birthdays. Or anniversaries. Or spontaneous family reunions. Or…_

He paused in the middle of considering why someone might need to purchase large amounts of food.

 _Then again,_ he thought, as a twenty-or-thirty-something woman gave her son very specific instructions for the critical mission of finding a can of peas in aisle 6. _More people live out here. Safer for the kids._

He remembered all too well just what Leia had said when he’d first moved out to the Industrial District; She’d expressly forbidden Ben from going to visit him on his own. 

_No walking around in that place,_ she’d said. She had a point, and Luke had backed her up. A lone ten-year-old walking around the bad side of town was almost certainly going to encounter trouble. Leia took issue with Ben walking around with him, too – A 5’9’’, lightly built man was only slightly less likely to run into the same problem.

Ben, of course, had pushed his parents’ rules to the limit whenever he possibly could. Even now, Luke still grinned at the memory of the day when his nephew had shown up at his building on a bicycle that he’d bought on the sly with his allowance. 

_Mom said no walking!_

Leia had grounded Ben for the weekend, but she conceded the point. She let him ride everywhere, as long as Luke was with him if he went over ‘the factory line,’ and surprisingly Ben had honored her wishes. Luke considered it a mark of maturity; Ben recognized that the reasons for the rules were quite valid. And biking was comparatively safer, no matter where you were.

Still, Luke had expected to see much less of Ben after he received permission, but his nephew surprised him. They started meeting up on Saturdays. They’d usually bike around the city – permission or not, Luke made sure they usually stuck to the safer parts of town. 

They’d talk about what Luke liked to think of as ‘Ben’ things, a ten-year-old’s trials and tribulations, victories and joys. More than once, it occurred to him that the world of a ten-year-old had a lot of things in common with the world of an adult. The challenges and goals were different, but it was an arena in its own right. And the game could be _brutal._

‘This too, shall pass’ made no sense to most children, especially one as impressionable as Ben. _Everything_ hit his nephew hard. Scary pictures in children’s books, ice-cream sundaes, scratchy mittens and old socks, the nightly news, late night True Crime stories…Ben saw, felt, and remembered it all. The occasional thoughtless word or look from his peers – or, worse, his parents – cut deep, even if it wasn't _about_ him, not really.

Telling Ben to keep things in perspective did not have much of an impact – from his nephew’s point of view, life beyond age 11 was too mysterious, too alien, to even consider, much less plan for. 

Sometimes Luke wondered if the reason that Ben liked Ahch-To so much was because his neighborhood was _quiet._

So he made himself available. It was not terribly difficult, given his profession (at least when his deadlines were a long way off). It was on one of their weekly excursions that they found the small library half-hidden inside an old steel mill, and Ben confessed his desire to become a writer. He already had a pile of pages hidden in his closet. 

Knowing Ben’s personality, Luke was extremely happy that his nephew had found an artistic outlet. The sheer _intensity_ of the words raised a few alarms, but the grammar was good, the structure had promise, and it was clear that Ben took it very, very seriously. 

Luke had called Ben immediately when he found out that he’d given it up. 

_Why?_

_Stop it. You’re ruminating._ Thankfully his train of thought was interrupted by a surprised voice a few yards away. 

“Luke?” 

Finn stood on his toes and waved at him over the heads of a couple bickering over the fat percentage in the hamburger. 

“Finn!” Luke grinned as Rey’s friend elbowed his way through the crowd. “How are you?” 

“Good, I’m good,” said Finn. “Got out of work early,” he said with a happy sigh, tugging on his stiff collar in an attempt to loosen his tie. “My boss may have grown a soul. Or, you know, bought one at a crossroads or something.” 

“Armitage Hux, right?” Luke asked, stepping to the side to let Finn get a look at the meat. 

“Oh yes,” he said. “How do you – Oh, _right.”_ Finn turned to Luke, the edge of his mouth quirking up. “He’s been spending a lot of time in Rey’s building, hasn’t he?” Luke nodded. 

“Yes – Sounds like he’s riding everyone pretty hard.” 

“Understatement,” Finn growled. “Rey’s section – Well – If she’s told you anything at all, you’ll know that they’re getting nailed. It’s only really half him,” Finn admitted. “The rest is Ren.” He eyed Luke carefully. “But she’s probably mentioned that, too.” 

“Repeatedly,” Luke sighed. He glanced sideways at Finn, frowning. He knew that Rey had told Finn and Poe about Kylo’s visit, but he wasn’t sure if they were privy to all the details. Such as the fact that Kylo was his nephew. A pang shot through him as he realized that he’d never asked Rey how much she wanted to involve her friends in that particular part of the mess. 

_Not that they aren’t already,_ he thought. 

It was immediately clear that Finn had been thinking along the same lines. 

“You know they used to date, right?” 

“Yes,” said Luke, unable to keep the edge out of his voice. 

“So you know it got…bad.” 

Luke nodded. He gripped the basket tighter, on the edge of asking about the silence between Rey’s words. 

The moment broke when a frazzled man with a squalling toddler on his back elbowed his way between them and snatched up a four-pound package of hamburger. 

“Look,” Finn continued. “This is kind of a bad place to talk. Do you want to go get coffee, or something?” 

“Yes,” said Luke. Finn smiled hesitantly. 

“Come on, then. I know a place…” 

* 

They ended up at a café that morphed into a sports bar after 7 at night. Finn directed them to a booth in the back, waving at the bartender, and ordered four cups of iced coffee and an enormous plate of nachos. 

“Everything goes with coffee,” he said, smiling at Luke’s reaction to the odd pairing. “Keep that in mind when you make Rey breakfast.” 

Luke almost choked on a tortilla chip. 

“What?” he gasped. Finn chuckled and passed him a glass of water. 

“Just messing with you,” he said. Then his eyes narrowed. “You _are_ planning to make her breakfast, right?” 

“I – Well – ” 

“I don’t mean _tomorrow,”_ said Finn. “I’m just saying.” 

“Finn – “ 

“Luke,” said Finn, holding up a hand. “I’m just saying. I’ve only seen her a couple times since she moved out, but from what I _have_ seen…Well. Let’s just say I can read her like a book. And I know that something’s going on between you two.” 

Luke took a moment to gather his words. There were so many things that he could say. About her voice, her smile, the little tendrils of hair that were always falling out of her braid, framing her face with soft curls. And her eyes, so sharp even after days of early mornings and late nights, watching him, so close and warm. 

“There is,” he said quietly, looking Finn straight in the eye. 

Finn looked back coolly, weighing his words. 

“Good,” he said finally. “I think the rest goes without saying…No, I will anyway.” Finn leaned forward. “Rey is one of the two people I care about the most in this world. I will _always_ have her back. Do _not_ hurt her.” 

“Never,” said Luke. _Never._

The word hung thick and heavy between them. Then Finn shifted back into his seat, a small, careful smile on his lips. 

“Ok,” he said. “I’m changing the subject. Sort of. What happened when Kylo showed up?” 

* 

The rising tide of conversation insulated them from curious stares, and somehow made the words easier on Luke’s tongue. It still came out in pieces, in choppy starts and stops as Finn jumped in to ask questions, and inform Luke (and the world at large), exactly what he thought about the whole thing. 

“I think I’ve seen this movie,” said Finn, when they’d finally reached the end. 

“More like this soap opera,” Luke replied, finishing off his second cup of coffee. 

Finn had guessed most of it on his own – Such as Rey staying over at Luke’s-– but the blood connection was quite a surprise. 

“I _was_ wondering why he knocked on your door in the first place. I thought that he was just going around the building, asking about her. Which, well…I wouldn’t put it past him,” Finn said, grimacing. “And why you didn’t immediately call 911 – I mean, the whole thing was bad, but if a stranger tried that –” 

“Yeah,” said Luke, scowling. “I was seconds from calling anyway.” 

Finn sighed, rubbing his eyes wearily. “I mean…Hell, Luke, I don’t have words for this.” 

“Neither do I. And I do that for a living.” 

Finn scowled, and picked at the remains of the demolished nachos. 

“I read your book, you know,” he said. “Rey actually bought it for me right after she moved in. Total coincidence,” he said, grinning. “Good stuff. I swear that ending…” Finn shook his head. “Killer. And then there’s Chapter 7...” Luke groaned. 

“Oh God, Chapter 7…You have no idea how many times I’ve heard that.” 

“Hey, credit where credit is due,” said Finn, smiling broadly. 

“Thanks,” said Luke. “You know…” He hesitated. So far, he’d only told Rey. “I’m working on a sequel. Please don’t mention it to anyone. You know how the internet works these days.” 

“And you don’t want the universe to know,” said Finn. “Smart. Don’t worry.” Finn held out his hand. “Your secret is safe with me.” 

Luke shook his hand. 

“I know.” 

“So,” said Finn, releasing him. “Plans for the weekend?” 

“Well…Rey said that she wants to go to the Cove in the morning. I know she got a couple days off, and it’s going to be frozen over soon....” 

“Well,” said Finn. “It so happens that we’re meeting there tomorrow, so do you want in? Just the beach,” he said hurriedly. “It’s not Winter _yet,_ but thanks to your cliff adventure Poe and I aren’t going anywhere _near_ the rocks anytime soon. I want you to meet BB, too…I’m not sure if Rey’s asked you yet. And it's date night tomorrow for me and Poe, so after that...” 

“You know, she _did_ mention something,” said Luke, thinking back to earlier in the week. “She was a bit tired, though, so I was going to check with her when she got home.” 

“So…Yes?” 

“Absolutely,” said Luke. Finn’s grin lit up the booth. 

“We’re leaving early…So now it’s _your_ job to make sure Rey gets up.” 

“No problem,” said Luke. 

The weekend was looking better by the minute. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. I'm a child of the 90's, and in the 90's, Your Bicycle = Freedom. If there was a sidewalk or a bike path between you and Interesting Stuff you'd use it. I think that this was a thing in the 80's too (hi there 'Stranger Things!').
> 
> 2\. Ben/Kylo has very little impulse control...Unless he can see a reason to rein himself in. Excessive external stimulation just feeds into his instant-gratification issues.
> 
>  **Fun Fact:**  
>  A couple years ago I did a show with a community theater whose rehearsal space was in a re-purposed mill. Their floor did not have heat. Rehearsals were during the winter, and HOLY MOTHER OF GOD we were freezing our asses off before they set up an extremely old fashioned heater, that was basically a metal drum/stove thing with an open flame. Singing when your breath is fogging up the air is a unique experience, to say the least O_O
> 
> So, uhm, yeah, that's why Rey needs to get creative with her insulation/heating plans... #coolstorybro xD


	10. The First Guest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Rey make plans for Saturday, and get a bit more comfortable with each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I learned my lesson with 'Guest Accommodations,' and therefore broke this one up into chunks.

Rey hopped out of the shower, wrapped herself in a towel, and squelched downstairs to check on the potatoes. It was just after 8; she’d spent a little over an hour cleaning up after the movers, putting away the clothing that she’d been moving in and out of plastic storage boxes for the past few weeks, and generally adjusting to having an actual furnished apartment. She laid _The Call of Cthulhu_ on the coffee table, smiling a little. _The Dark Cove_ went upstairs on her nightstand. The few books that Kylo hadn’t destroyed went into the mammoth living room bookcase, along with the photographs of Finn, Poe, and her mother and grandparents, all nicely re-framed. She’d carefully taped the ripped ones together, and arranged the frames so that the worst stains were hidden.

Rey had considered scanning the pictures, editing out both the tears and the stains, and printing off the clean copies, but…You could barely see the damage, unless you were extremely close. And she’d had some of them since she was a child, from the days before digital everything. They made the room look a bit more complete, the handful of books less lonely.

She smiled a little as she cracked open the oven. 

_Nearly done,_ she thought, and reached into the fridge for the chicken marinating in a glass dish. _Yeech…_ She set it on the counter gingerly, grimacing at the sloshing contents. No matter how tasty the end product was, raw chicken was just _gross._

Rey tightened the towel a bit – it was _her_ place, she could (and did) walk around naked (or almost naked) if she wanted -- and moved the raw meat into a baking pan, and set it into the oven next to the potatoes. 

_Ok, 10 minutes for the potatoes, 35 for the --_

There was a knock on the door. 

“Hold on!” Rey yelled as she set the timer. She paused on her way to the door, bit her lip hesitantly. “Who is it?”

“It’s Luke – I can come back later – “

“No it’s fine,” said Rey. She took a deep breath, tucked her dripping hair behind her ears, and opened the door halfway. She stood slightly behind it and peered around the edge.

“Hey,” she said. “Sorry, I just got out of the shower, and was cooking and…stuff...Would you like to come in?”

Luke froze. He swallowed, eyes flicking to the water beading on the hollow of her throat, trickling steadily downwards. Rey’s breath caught. A hot flush shuddered through her as the towel slipped in her suddenly loose fingers. 

Somehow she tore her gaze away. When she looked back, Luke had his eyes fixed firmly on her face, a wry smile tugging at his lips. Rey flushed again, but felt herself smile in return. It was impossible not to, really.

“Uhm…Luke?”

“Oh…Yes, thanks.”

She opened the door the rest of the way and waved him into the kitchen. She locked the door as gracefully as she could manage while keeping the towel in place.

“Eh, watch out, I think I dripped all over the floor…” It was true; she’d left a trail of wet footprints across the living room, and all around the kitchen. “I didn’t want to burn the potatoes…”

“No problem,” said Luke, taking a look around, his eyebrows lifting as he took in the new furnishings. “I like what you’ve done with the place.” 

“Thanks,” said Rey. “Ah – I’ll just be a minute – Clothes, you know? Have a seat.” She pointed at the sofa and made a hasty retreat. 

She shut the door carefully, but deliberately. 

_You couldn’t take two seconds to go get a bathrobe?_ Rey thought, annoyance setting in as the embarrassment faded. She threw the towel across her headboard and rummaged through her underwear drawer, her mind buzzing, picking apart the last five minutes. _I must be more tired than I thought. I wasn’t thinking, I wasn’t --_

Wasn’t that a _good_ thing?

Rey paused, her fingers twining in soft cotton. 

_I haven’t seen him in a few days. I was just…happy._

She hadn’t wanted to wait. And she wasn’t tired. Not at all.

A smile tugged at her lips. Downstairs, the oven timer pinged. 

“Rey?” Luke yelled from the foot of the stairs. “Should I – “

“Just a second – Could you turn that off?” she called down, hurriedly pulling on a plain pair of panties and a light bralette, followed by a t-shirt and sweatpants. The warm scent of cooking potatoes filled the air as she headed for the stairs.

Luke was checking inside the oven when she entered the kitchen. He turned at the sound of her footsteps, and grinned broadly.

“Smells good,” he said. “Oh, and look out…” He pointed quickly at the floor.

Rey looked down. He’d laid out a couple of hand towels to soak up the water.

“Thank you,” she said, sighing. “I didn’t hear the timer, so I went straight from the shower to here. The potatoes can come out, but not the chicken – Here – ”

She stepped around the towels and opened the oven. Luke stepped back and passed her an oven mitt from the counter. Rey pulled the five baked potatoes off the rack, and lined them up on a cookie sheet on top of the stove. She poked them with a fork, humming with satisfaction; the skin was nice and crunchy. 

“Ok, awesome,” she said. “25 minutes to go for the rest...Can you stay for dinner? I have a place to sit now, so…”

“I’d love to,” he said. “Can I help?” 

“Ok – Great!” said Rey, her stomach fluttering a little. Just a little. “Could you grab the peas out of the freezer?” Finn had finally gotten the thing working last weekend, though she still had to keep it half full of ice so she wouldn’t strain the coolant pump too much. 

“I ran into Finn in the store today,” said Luke, brushing her shoulder as he stepped around her. “He said that you’re all going to the Cove tomorrow…”

“Yeah,” said Rey a little sheepishly, rummaging in the cupboard. “Did I ask you to come? I think I did – I was actually going to find you tonight and check. And, um, here you are, so…?”

 _And I’m babbling,_ she thought. _Real smooth, Rey._

“Are you asking me out?” 

Luke opened the bag of peas. Rey turned red. 

“Maybe…” she said. “Here, use this.” She passed him a bowl. “It’s just for the morning. And lunch. They kind of want you to meet BB. And it’s probably one of the last times that we’ll be able to…You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

Luke leaned against the counter, watching her closely, his eyes direct and serious. She swallowed dryly, the tremor in her chest growing stronger. 

“Luke, would you like to come out to the Cove tomorrow?” She turned to face him. “With me? As a date?” 

“Yes,” he said. 

It was strange. She’d seen his place, met his sister, and slept in his bed. Twice. And yet warm relief bubbled up from deep inside her at that quiet _yes._ She couldn’t keep the smile off her face.

They’d be out in the world together, and not as friends. That made it _real._

 _Maybe this is why people date,_ she thought. 

“We’ll have chaperones,” she said, taking a step forward. Luke chuckled, and drew her towards him. Rey shivered as one arm circled her waist, while his hand swept warm and firm up her back to tangle in her hair. She slid her own hands up his chest, smiling at his shiver, and gripped the collar of his shirt, pulling him close. 

“I don’t mind,” he whispered. 

She closed the distance without thinking. Her lips crashed into his as she pulled him flush against her by the front of his shirt. Overbalanced, she staggered back into the kitchen table, gasping as Luke yanked her back, briefly lifting her off the ground, backing them into the kitchen counter. 

“Got you,” he murmured in her ear, drawing a whimper out of Rey as the words shook low and dark in his chest, so close to her own that she could feel every rumble, every breath, even through the layers of clothing. She pulled him in again, coaxing his mouth open with a light nip and a press of tongue, and traced soft circles on his back, working her way down to the edge of his shirt, slipping her hand underneath the worn flannel. Luke groaned and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss, making her head swim. Rey tipped her head back to take him deeper, her back arching as she sucked his on his tongue greedily, her fingers digging into his skin. 

She pulled back a little when her breath grew rough and ragged and his muscles tensed under her touch. Slowly she caught her breath, steadying herself on his hip, letting herself feel the firm weight of his arms, the heat of his chest crushed to hers. She breathed in deep, trying to seal the memory inside her mind. _This is it._

Slowly, she reached out and touched the top button of his shirt. Luke’s arm tightened around her waist. 

Rey hesitated. She looked up, heat rushing to her cheeks as they locked eyes, his gaze searing her to the bone. 

“Is this ok?” she asked, biting her lip as nervousness stabbed through her. 

“Rey...” He reached up and pressed her hand to his chest. 

She made short work of the buttons, despite the rather unfair distraction of Luke’s fingers tangling in her damp hair, the contrast of warm and dry with cool and wet tugging at her focus. But finally she stepped back, slipped it off of his shoulders, and then there was heat and skin and shifting muscle underneath her hands, and Luke’s mouth burning trails down her neck. Rey grasped his shoulders and tugged him forward, the backs of her thighs hitting the kitchen table. Her t-shirt suddenly felt entirely too small, an unpleasant, wholly unnecessary _itch._

_Well, that won’t do…_

Rey walked Luke back to the counter and placed his hands on her waist. She caught his eye, grinned, and lifted her arms over her head. 

Luke pulled her towards him, his hands slipping underneath her shirt, running up and down her sides before gathering up the cloth and tugging it over her head. Rey hissed at the sudden touch of cool air on her skin, but was quickly hushed by Luke’s firm grip on her waist, and warm, slightly rough hands sweeping up her back, pressing her to his chest. Rey gasped at the hot press of skin on skin, need flooding her senses.

_It’s been so long…_

“Luke,” She pulled back slightly, meeting his eyes. “I want to touch you.”

Luke cupped her face in his hands, and pulled her in for a kiss, the sweet grind of tongue and teeth, enveloping her in his heat.

“Just touch,” he gasped. “I – I need – “

He looked down at her, hesitation flickering in his eyes.

Rey’s chest suddenly felt tight.

It wasn’t just her.

“Got it,” she said. Luke clasped her to him, his breath shuddering in his chest. Rey’s eyes fluttered shut. She let herself feel.

“Couch?” she asked. Luke’s heart sped up. 

“Couch.” 

 

*

 

The timer went off when they entered the living room. Somehow Rey retained the presence of mind to save the chicken. She almost dropped the pan anyway – concentrating with Luke leaning against the counter in jeans and nothing else, looking at her like _that_ was nearly impossible. 

His arms were around her waist as soon as she turned off the oven. She laughed and spun him around, grasped the waistband of his jeans, and marched him into the living room. 

The couch was just big enough to fit them both, with Luke reclining against the side cushions, and Rey half in his lap. She still had to hang on tight, and balance carefully on all fours, a knee between his thighs, the other pressed between his leg and the back cushions. 

“I need a bigger couch,” she muttered, bracing herself carefully as she hovered over him. Luke grinned wickedly, and sat up halfway so that she could put her weight on his shoulders, their bodies a breath apart. He shifted his thigh higher so that it nestled between her legs. 

“It’s perfect,” he murmured, his mouth hot on her neck. Rey sucked in a breath as the rough cloth ground against her cleft. She shifted against him, fingers digging into his shoulders as the friction sent a jolt of heat straight to her core. 

“Like that?” said Luke, pressing closer. Rey gasped into his mouth, the rough slide of his skin on her abdomen flooding her senses. And when she tilted her hips _just right…_

There was too much cloth in the way. 

_Just touching,_ she thought fiercely. Then she grinned. That still covered an awful lot of ground. 

Rey disentangled herself and sat back slowly, mapping his chest with her hands, watching him carefully. She drank in the sight before her, at the keen _focus_ in his eyes, flicking over her skin as though he was trying to memorize her, the fine sheen of sweat beading on his chest, the slow clench of wiry muscle beneath his skin. She cupped his face in her hands, pressed a light kiss against his jawline, drawing out a low sigh, and worked her way down to his waist, her fingers sweeping carefully over the ridges and curves, taking careful note of each soft noise and quiet tremble, each involuntary twitch of his hips. 

She paused at the faint bruise on his side. 

“Am I hurting you?” she asked quietly, tracing the edge with the tips of her fingers. Luke shook his head and reached for her hand, twining his fingers with hers. 

“Never.”

“I’ll be careful anyway,” she whispered, and lifted his hand to her cheek, nuzzling it before pressing a kiss to the palm. She flicked her tongue against the rough pad, smiling at his shiver, ran it down her neck, and pressed his palm firmly against her chest. They locked eyes. Rey smiled, her heart fluttering, as she guided him to her breast.

Luke groaned as she let her hand fall to his shoulder. He sat up, enfolding her in his heat, his breath a rough drag-pull that had Rey moaning into his shoulder, all nervousness forgotten as he cupped her breast, circling the nipple with his thumb, tight and aching through the thin material. Luke’s other hand stroked her back, hot and firm, sliding teasingly over the back band. 

“I might have to help with that,” she gasped out as he slipped a finger under the edge. “No clasps.”

Luke nodded and rested his hands on her hips, digging in his fingers as she worked her bralette over her head. Heat pooled low and wet in her core at the rough noise, half moan, half growl, that reverberated in Luke’s chest as she as she stretched her arms over her head, arching her back, riding up his thigh in her haste to remove the undergarment. Her skin burned from neck to groin as his grip tightened, mouth falling slightly open as he stared. 

Rey flushed, suddenly unsure. It had been some time since she’d been this exposed with someone without the expectation of sex, the kind of sex where nobody was really looking at anything, or touching her with anything besides a cock. She pushed back the urge to cover herself, instead shifting her weight forward and pulling his arms around her. Luke froze, palms splayed flat on her back, his chest heaving. She leaned into him, her shoulders tensing up as the firm heat of his chest against her breasts woke her half-forgotten, long-denied need for touch, for _this,_ just her and someone she – someone she _cared_ for, in their own skin. 

She squeezed her eyes shut, her heart fluttering as she waited for him to react. 

Luke looped his arm around her waist and tugged her closer, his other hand drifting slowly, firmly up her back, coming the rest between her shoulder blades. He rubbed gently, working the knots out of her muscles, and murmuring into her hair. 

It might have been _‘thank you.’_

The tension trickled steadily away, until nothing was left but the weight of his hands, and rapidly rising warmth. 

Rey tightened her grip on his biceps and slid up until she was level with his mouth, hissing as her nipples dragged across the smattering of chest hair, tight and aching. Luke’s hands began moving with intent, stroking firm and hot up and down her back, one settling in her hair, turning her head towards him. 

They shared breath. 

Rey wasn’t sure who moved first. And when her senses drowned in the feel of Luke’s hands on her skin, and the pull of his kiss, she didn’t care.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. So that was a thing that happened :D  
> 2\. Hopefully it was clear that they stopped at second base. I _did_ say this was a slow burn...Not for long, though, don't worry!  
>  3\. They'll only be hanging out with Finn, Poe, and BB until lunch. So they'll have lots of Saturday left. If you know what I mean.  
> 4\. YAY everyday intimacy! This includes practical things like not burning your food because of _distractions..._


	11. The Last Day of Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey, Luke, Finn, and Poe (and BB) head out to Niima Cove. It's obvious to everyone that Winter is Coming...It is a time for change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I'm so sorry for the slow updates :P Grad school is kicking my butt, and at this stage in the story, I'm feeling the need to be verrrrry careful about how I handle it.

Eventually they remembered to eat. The chicken was still quite delicious cold, though Luke suspected that he wouldn’t have noticed even if the opposite was true. His head was still swimming with the feeling of Rey’s skin pressed to his, the warm, living weight of her in his arms. Thankfully, she put her shirt back on before they sat down. 

“Shirts on at the table,” she said, grinning as she tossed him his. “House rules.”

“Very wise,” said Luke, buttoning up halfway. “Too many distractions.” 

“Am I distracting?” Rey asked, adjusting his collar as she stepped around him, her fingers ghosting along his neck and shoulders. 

“Not at all.” Luke snagged the edge of her shirt and tugged her down into a chair. Rey smirked and scooted closer, pressing her thigh against him as she leaned into him.

“Eat your dinner,” she said in his ear. “We’ve got an early day tomorrow.” 

Luke said goodnight after they cleared off the table, and stuck the leftovers in the fridge, Rey muttering with mock exasperation about getting a microwave. She walked him to the door, her hand on the small of his back. 

They stopped in the hallway. Rey’s hand lingered on his waist, a gentle weight that pulled at a lost, quiet place deep inside of him. He turned, and cupped her face in his hands. She smiled, her eyes bright, fingers knotting in his shirt as he kissed her chastely on the lips. 

“Good night,” he said, not moving. She shivered. Then she planted a quick kiss on his cheek, and let him go.

“Good night Luke. Wake me up at 7? My alarm can be…weird sometimes.” 

“Of course. Knock on my door if I’m not there.”

“Ok…”

Rey stepped back quickly, and slipped into her apartment.

Luke slept better than he had in ages.

After a _very_ cold shower, of course.

 

*

 

Between the whirl of thoughts in her mind and the fresh, bubbling glow that seemed to fill the living room, the kitchen, and that odd little dusty closet on the other side of the bookcase, Rey almost forgot about her new bed. She was halfway to the _other_ closet, ready to haul out her air mattress when she stumbled across an open cardboard box, one of many that had arrived earlier that day. 

Curtains. Rugs. Sheets and lampshades and bookends. Pieces of a home. 

Rey sat down heavily on the couch, and leaned back into the cushions, trying to take it all in. She still needed to ask Luke how he’d strung up those lights, but…right now the soft glow of the reading lamp by the sofa, and the smaller lamp on the end table near the staircase just felt _right._ The bookcase stood in a pool of light, the shadows a gradual fade towards the brick wall.

The leather was still warm. Rey tucked her legs underneath her and let her eyelids flutter shut, her chest strangely tight as she curled up in the remains of Luke’s body heat. 

_Don’t fall asleep…Don’t fall asleep…_

The old pipes overhead creaked alarmingly. Rey jerked fully awake, almost falling off the sofa. 

But it got her up. She set her alarms for 6:45, brushed her teeth, and collapsed into bed.

 

*

 

The sun woke Rey before her alarm. Just for a moment, Rey thought she was back in Luke’s bed, wrapped up in a cocoon of warm, clean-smelling sheets, his arm across her waist, and his beard pricking the back of her neck. Her stomach flipped. She reached back, and –

It was a hairbrush. She’d been snuggling with a _hairbrush._

_Well, I_ was _distracted last night,_ Rey thought, a little smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She climbed out of bed, wincing as her feet touched the cold floor, and skipped quickly to her bureau for a pair of socks. _Where the hell are my slippers…_

She pulled on a bathrobe and texted _‘I’m awake’_ to Luke. She got a response after two very long minutes - _‘Ditto. Leave at 7:30?’_ She responded with a ‘yes’ and a smile.

_Ok, where did I stash my winter clothes…_

 

*

 

They took Rey’s car, after a quick bite to eat at Luke’s place. The windows were thoroughly frosted over, despite the fact that she was parked in the building garage. Fortunately, she kept a brush and window-scraper (and a shovel, and a bag of salt) in her trunk year-round, to Luke’s amusement. 

“You only have to get snowed in once,” she said archly, her voice muffled through her scarf, and attacked the windshield with annoyed vigor. “At least this isn’t ice.”

“Give it a week,” said Luke, brushing off the headlights. “It’s almost Thanksgiving.”

Winter tended to sneak up on Niima, and pounce in November after a somewhat mild Fall. One day you’d be walking around in a sweatshirt and jeans, and the next in more layers than an Arctic explorer. General consensus set the first day of Winter as the first time ice appeared on the edge of the Cove. Clearly it was almost there. 

They huddled in the car until the inside de-fogged, and Rey could take off her ski gloves, though it was still less than ideal. She declined Luke’s offer to sit in his lap, as the whole ‘share the body heat’ thing only worked with skin-to-skin contact, and there was _no way_ she was taking off her coat, thank you very much. 

“Something to remember,” he deadpanned, his hands on the dashboard heat vents. 

“Just be glad the heater works,” said Rey, as they pulled into the Dunkin’ Donuts drive-through. “Here we go…”

She ordered two extra-larges. Luke mumbled thanks and clasped his tight, humming contentedly as heat seeped back into his fingers. Rey rolled her eyes.

“Rub it in why don’t y – Oh – “

She jumped a little as Luke set his coffee down and pressed her slightly numb fingers in between his newly-warm palms.

“Skin-to-skin contact,” he said, with a smirk.

“…Ok, I can drive one-handed.”

The car was a bit warmer, anyway. 

 

*

 

Poe’s pickup truck was idling in the parking lot when they got to the Cove. Rey grinned when she saw the fogged-up windows, and her two friends silhouetted inside, wrangling a very excited Labrador. She pulled up next to them and waved. 

“I’m going to assume that’s BB,” said Luke, releasing her hand and passing over her gloves. 

“Yeah…Ready to go?” she asked Luke, pulling them on, suddenly nervous. Luke leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. 

“Onward,” he said. 

BB went for Luke as soon as they got out of the car. Finn gave her a lot of slack on the leash, and shot a careful look at Poe as the dog sniffed her way up Luke’s legs, her tail wagging excitedly. Luke crouched down and offered BB his hand, sending her into wiggling glee. Finally, her barking dropped into a happy _huff,_ and she settled, her tongue lolling, graciously accepting a vigorous ear-scratching from her new friend.

Rey grinned as Poe noticeably relaxed. 

“Picked a good day,” he said, leaning against his truck. “We’ve got the beach pretty much to ourselves.”

“That’s because it’s freezing,” said Rey, nudging him in the arm.

“Wimps. They don’t know what they’re missing, I --” 

Rey winced as the howl of the wind swallowed the rest of his words.

“Says the man who won’t do the Polar Bear swim,” Finn stage-whispered to Luke. 

“Really?” he said, arching an eyebrow. 

“My toughness is unquestionable,” said Poe archly. “Besides, I have no interest in getting my ass posted all over the internet.”

“There are these things called _Speedos_ these days, you know,” said Rey.

“That’s even worse. And banana hammocks are not how I roll. I have a reputation to protect!”

“So that thing in Aruba was just a – “

_“Finn...”_ growled Poe. 

“Very wise,” said Luke. “I needed help getting back into my clothes, it was so cold.”

Finn and Poe stared. 

“Well, shit,” said Poe. He unzipped his coat and fished out a twenty-dollar bill. “You win,” he grumbled. Finn smirked and pocketed it. 

“Is there anything you guys _haven’t_ bet on?” asked Rey. Then her eyes narrowed. “Did you – “

“Oh would you just _look_ at the time?” said Poe, standing up and taking BB’s leash. “We’ve got to move if we’re going to get to the Teeth by 10…”

Finn winked at Rey, and headed after them.

 

*

 

Poe let BB off the leash when she’d calmed down a bit, and there weren’t any strangers close by. The Lab knew the way, but wasn’t entirely convinced that Luke did, and so spent most of the trip pacing and jumping around him, her breath steaming in the air, sometimes running a few yards ahead and patiently waiting, tail wagging up a storm.

“She’s taking care of you,” Rey said, the fifth time it happened. 

“She reminds me of Artoo,” said Luke, grinning. “Too smart for her own good.”

Rey was walking between Luke and Poe, shielded from the worst of the wind coming off the water. They were mostly silent, instead listening to the roar of the waves and the wind howling plaintively in the crags, the occasional cry of a seagull. The sky was a light gray, the air stinging with the undefinable potential that meant _snow._

“Last day of Fall. Probably,” said Finn. 

“Think it’ll hold off until we get back?” Rey asked, huddling closer to Luke. _At least we all dressed for it. Mostly._ All four of them were outfitted with heavy, hooded coats, boots, gloves, and wool hats and scarves. Three minutes in Poe was grumbling about needing a ski mask, which meant that Luke just _had_ to point out that he had quite a bit of extra facial insulation that was impossible to forget in the car.

Poe eyed him speculatively. 

“Something to consider…Finn, how do you feel about beards?” 

“How do you feel about _no kissing_ until you can’t give me stubble burn?” 

“…Damn it.”

“No patience. None at all,” said Rey. “You and your permanent 5 o’clock shadow…”

“I’m a mechanic. It goes with the coveralls,” said Poe archly. 

“Everything worth doing requires time and effort,” said Rey. She paused. “It’s worth it.”

“Reallllllly?” said Poe, shooting a sly glance at Luke.

“Really.” She caught Luke’s eye. He cocked an eyebrow and grinned broadly.

“I’ll keep that in mind…”

 

*

 

It took some time to get to the Teeth, but it was worth it. 

_Just in time,_ thought Rey. It was nearly 10, and the temperature was already dropping. Fog horns sounded low and mournful over the water. The tide was rising fast – 

‘The Teeth’ was a rock formation that spread out from the edge of the Cove in a rough line, projecting far out under the water and merging with an underwater reef. When the tide was low, the Teeth closer to the shore – and the cave system beneath -- were popular with hikers during the summer, but as they were often the first part of the Cove to ice up as Winter drew near, they were usually deserted from September onwards. 

The fact that half of the caves filled with water at high tide was another major deterrent. 

_Well…It’s kind of a draw, too._ Rey grinned. She’d played quite a few games of ‘chicken’ with the tide when she was younger. There was just something about waiting in the dark, ancient stone pressing in on all sides, water black as pitch welling up beneath you that sent the heart into overdrive. A delicious sting of danger…As long as you had a way out. Parks and Rec had rigged an iron rail at the end of the ‘safe zone’ in each cave – about 500 feet inside, a distance that (on average) a human that was able to get in there in the first place could walk in less than 5 minutes. 

Because when the tide got to the mouth of the cave, the water rose fast. In some of them, the water line was far above Rey’s head. And as Winter progressed, the cave floors froze solid when the tide was out – a recipe for broken bones if Rey had ever seen one.

It was a similar case for the offshore Teeth – the rocks and reef brimmed with bright life, and drew thousands of tourists from around the country. But when the weather grew rough, the Teeth earned their name, and lurked under dark water, waiting for reckless captains.

Every so often, the remains would wash up on shore. 

Something occurred to her as they followed BB into the first cave. Finn and Poe clambered up after the Labrador and made a beeline for the back of the cave. Rey and Luke hung back a little, staying on the larger, slightly more stable rocks near the entrance.

“So, I’m about halfway through _The Dark Cove,_ said Rey. She sat down carefully on a slab of quartzite with a good view of the ocean, out of reach of the wind, wincing a little as she felt the cold through her pants. “And I was thinking…Is it about this? From a certain point of view?” She leaned against the cave wall and pointed out to sea, then in a broad circle, encompassing everything she could see. 

Luke nodded and sat down on her left.

“It’s why I use a pen name,” he said, reaching over and taking her hand. Rey scooted closer until they were shoulder-to-shoulder. She couldn’t feel him through the heavy layers of clothing, but he was still a comforting, solid presence. “I’m pretty sure there’s not a local in this town that wouldn’t figure that one out. The ones that’ve been out here, anyway.”

“It’s beautiful,” said Rey quietly. She pressed closer, lining up her leg with his, and squeezed his hand. Waves crashed against the rocks, towers of whitewater roaring high in the cold air. Her senses filled with the bite of wild, open air, and the deep, free breath of the sea. She laid her head on Luke’s shoulder, and held him tight. Their eyes locked, sharp, fierce. Rey’s heart thudded, deep and powerful. She couldn’t close her eyes.

So she reached up, tugged on his collar, and kissed him. 

Everything else fell away. There was just the hot, hard press of his mouth, pulling her in, and the pound of her blood in her ears and chest, so much louder than the waves, as she gripped his shoulder tight. Their breath steamed in the cold air, the pink sting of warming windburn spreading across her cheeks. Sweat beaded underneath her heavy clothing, trickling between her breasts, so sensitive -- _aching_ \-- from cold and excitement.

She was half in his lap when 60 pounds of panting dog jumped on him instead. BB huffed, breath puffing, tongue lolling, and wiggled between them, tail thumping on the rock.

“Are you getting cold, girl?” Rey asked, when she could speak again. 

“Looks like,” said Luke, his voice rough. He rubbed her vigorously, rumbling in sympathy as the dog shivered under his hands. She showed no signs of moving as she soaked up warmth from their laps.

“If we come out again, we’re bringing her coat,” said Poe, stepping up to them. “She’ll be ok for a bit, but we need to head back. Come on, sweetie,” he said, reaching down and scratching her neck. “You’re not a puppy anymore, we can’t carry you back.”

“I carried her under my coat a few times,” said Finn, sitting next to Luke. He grinned as he took in the quite unusual flush flooding Rey’s cheeks. “You know baby carriers for hikers? Well, they have those for dogs…”

“It was adorable,” said Rey. “A big fuzzball under his coat.” She stood reluctantly, wincing as her joints twinged a little. “Yeesh, that rock was _cold._

“Not surprised you didn’t notice,” Finn deadpanned. Luke grinned and shook his head, getting to his feet. 

“I have no idea what you mean.”

“Right,” said Poe. He eyed the darkening sky. “We really should get back, though…This isn’t good for humans, either.”

 

*

 

They moved much faster on the return trip. It did, indeed, look like they had chosen a good time to head back. The tide was rising fast, the temperature was dropping faster, and Finn lost his hat to the wind about a mile before they got back to the parking lot. Him and Poe wound up sharing Poe’s hat, switching back and forth every few minutes. Rey held onto Luke the entire way. The frantic heat had faded somewhat, thanks to the cold, but, well, she didn’t’ _have_ to let go, did she?

They parted ways at the parking lot. Finn and Poe asked for a raincheck on their lunch, to take BB home and light up their fireplace -- no double entendre intended, they’d been stockpiling wood for weeks, and their heating bill actually went down when they had a fire going. Rey and Luke readily agreed. 

They didn’t say much on the ride home, just a quiet assertion that, yes, it had been a very good idea to go out. Rey said that it’d been a good morning. Luke said that Finn and Poe were good people. They both agreed that it was almost winter. 

Small talk that they hadn’t needed for quite some time. 

The silence grew thicker when they left the car, and heavy when they stepped out of the elevator onto their floor. The landlord had, apparently, finally gotten the boiler working. Heat emanated from the barely-insulated pipes running from the floor to the ceiling, the hot water humming under Rey’s fingers when she tapped the pipe next to her door. She pressed her hands to the metal surface, waited for them to warm, and then unlocked her door. 

Behind her, Luke sucked in a breath, ready to speak, but – he turned away, tugged off his gloves, and fumbled for his keys.

“Hey…”

Rey stepped up close, and tugged on his sleeve, nudging him, asking him to face her.

He did. Rey reached for him, took his icy fingers in her newly-warm hands. 

“Would you like to come in?” she asked softly. “For coffee? And…” She swallowed and caught his eye. 

Silence.

Rey’s stomach lurched. She dropped his hand and took a step back.

“It’s o – “

Luke closed the distance and pulled her in tight.

_“Yes,”_ he murmured into her hair, his voice going low and rough. 

Rey let out a low, nearly silent cry. She pulled him inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **1\. I am so, so sorry for the cliffhanger.** REALLY. I'm going to try my damndest to get the next part out soon. VERY SOON BECAUSE STORY MOMENTUM AND DAMN IT ALL I'VE BEEN WAITING TO WRITE THIS FOR LIKE FOREVER :O  
>  2\. We all know what 'come in for a cup of coffee, and...' means in this context, right?   
> 3\. I have a thing for the ocean. And stormy weather. It's just so...Raw and elemental.


	12. Insulation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey forgot to leave the heat on when she left the apartment. Fortunately, Rey is quite resourceful, and Luke is quite appreciative.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. I'm so sorry that it took this long to update!! I had a severe attack of the perfectionism gremlins :P
> 
> 2\. This is a friendly reminder that **this story has an M rating... ;)**

Rey swore as she pulled Luke over the threshold, right into a wall of freezing air. She’d turned down the thermostat when she’d left, to save power, and the heat in the corridor hadn’t gotten more than a few feet inside her door.

“Hold on a sec – “ Rey darted for the thermostat and cranked it up as high as it would go. The pipes groaned in protest as the boiler reluctantly diverted hot water to her apartment. She pressed her palm to the insulation and glared. 

“This is probably going to take a while. I didn’t know that it was going to be this cold today -- I would have left it on. But – “ She pulled off her coat, winced as the cold sliced through her thick sweater, and headed for the storage closet near the stairs. “Could you help me with this?” Luke grinned and removed his own coat. 

“Backup plan?” he said, as she pulled several thick, mismatched blankets off the top shelf.

“First backup plan – Voila!” She dragged a slightly rusty electric heater – courtesy of Poe’s Uncle -- out of the back of the closet.

They still had electricity, after all. She grinned sheepishly at Luke as they wheeled it into the living room. 

“Kind of a power sink, but it’s ok in emergencies…I’m thinking about getting a backup generator. Just in case. When I – Oh, crap, extension cord – “ She headed back to the closet, Luke eying her curiously. “Ok, here we go…”

She hooked the heater up next to the couch and laid a faded paisley quilt over it. Then she spread a blanket over the sofa, snatched up another, and beckoned to Luke.

“That’s going to take a few minutes,” she said, nodding at the heater. “In the meantime…” She caught his eye and pulled her sweater over her head. Still in a light t-shirt -- given the weather, dressing in layers had seemed wise – Rey winced at the sudden flood of cold, and turned to Luke, looking pointedly at his button-down.

“Well…This does work better with skin-to-skin contact…” said Luke, with a small smile. He worked on the buttons while Rey fiddled with the blanket, feeling oddly shy. 

Finally, Luke pulled off his outer shirt – no sign of stiffness in the muscles of his arms and back, Rey was pleased to notice – and draped it over the back of the sofa. She draped a blanket over her shoulders, and opened her arms. Luke stepped in close, resting his hands lightly on her hips as she wrapped them up in the blanket, stopping when her cheek pressed against his t-shirt, and his arms were pinned to his sides…and to her body. There was a brief a tug-of-war as they hobbled to the couch, Rey giggling when Luke’s grip tightened, and they both toppled onto the cushions. Somehow she wriggled an arm free, and rolled them towards the end of the couch. 

“Ok, now that one…” Rey stretched out with her feet and tugged the heater closer. After a bit of thrashing – and of Luke being absolutely _no_ help – she pulled the quilt up so that it covered her, Luke, and the heater like a tent.

“Cozy,” said Luke, with a smile.

“It’ll trap the heat in,” said Rey, trying to get her arm back under the blanket and across Luke’s chest. “We can warm up in here until the heat gets going.” 

It took a minute for them to get settled. Rey’s limbs were still stiff with cold; she felt as though she had grown three extra elbows, and all of them were hitting Luke in the stomach. Finally, he huffed with mock exasperation, sprawled out half on his back, and tugged her up higher so that she lay across his chest, her arms around his neck. She pulled her feet up on the couch, and tucked her head against his shoulder.

Rey sighed as warmth seeped back into her limbs. Wrapped up in the blanket and Luke, her awareness swam and dipped, and the edges of everything that wasn’t right there, right now seemed quite unimportant. Here in the nest of blankets and warm half-darkness, she could rest.

“I did this a few ti – a lot -- when I was younger,” she heard herself say.

 _And not so young._ Sometimes she felt as though she’d spent half of high school curled up next to a radiator.

Luke shifted under her. She shut her eyes. “Back in the 90s…we’d get the heat turned off a lot after…my Mom lost a few jobs. It was just starting to get bad in the factories, you know?”

“I remember,” Luke murmured. Vaguely, she registered his arms tightening around her.

 _Food and electricity usually beat out food and heat,_ she almost said. _With electricity, you have options. Like this. And the stove, and fridge, and light to read by…I could study…But sometimes…_

“I thought of this after a science class in school. Insulation, you know? I’d camp out near the radiator, and blankets are cheaper than…Sorry. I’m rambling.” _Shut. Up. Rey,_ she thought. 

Luke shook his head. 

“It’s all right,” he said. “This is smart. And resourceful.” Rey’s stomach fluttered, just a little. She tilted her head back and caught his eye.

“Not so bad, right?” she whispered. 

“Not at all,” Luke murmured. His breath puffed warm against her cheek. 

She settled against his chest, sighing as the heater started to work. Or, well, maybe it wasn’t. It was hard to tell, pressed against Luke’s solid, living heat, moving with each breath they took. 

Rey swallowed, her fingers tightening in the thin cotton of his shirt. Slowly, she slid her leg over his knee, and pressed it lightly between his thighs. Luke’s breath caught, his arms tightening around her. Rey shivered, and pressed closer, dragged her lips along his jawline, up towards his temple. His beard tingled on her skin as her fingers twined in his thick, soft hair, and stroked gently, drawing out a low hum that Rey felt from her lips to her core. 

She took hold of his shoulders and captured his mouth with hers, because it was Luke, and because she could. Luke opened for her, coaxed her deeper with a hot press of tongue, sweeping his hands up and down her back. Her t-shirt bunched up under her arms as she slipped lower down his body to get better access to his neck. Luke groaned as his hands slid from cloth to skin. Rey gasped and dug her fingers into his biceps, as the hot drag of skin swallowed most of her conscious mind.

She regained some coherency when Luke’s hand drifted teasingly up her flank, and slipped under the edge of her shirt to trace along the line of her bra, pausing at the hooks in the back. She hummed assent, and twisted her arm behind her back to help…only to find herself trapped in the layers of blankets, still wound tightly around them. 

Laughter burst out of her as she tried to wriggle loose. 

“Oh – wait -!” Luke started to say, just as she disentangled her arm and pushed the quilt aside…And immediately snatched it back.

“Oh my _God_ that’s cold!” she yelped, plastering herself to his chest. Luke pulled the quilt back over them, chuckling.

“It’s not that bad…” he murmured, leaning in to nip lightly at her lips. “We probably shouldn’t move for a bit, though…” His hand trailed down the dip in the small of her back, and then lower, to the firm curve of her ass. 

Rey smirked.

“No, we shouldn’t,” she said, and kissed him.

 

*

 

They moved to Rey’s room when their breath wasn’t fogging in the air. Rey’s shirt ended up somewhere on the floor between the couch and the stairs. Luke draped his carefully over the banister, grinning, while Rey attempted to haul him up the stairs by his belt loops. 

“So eager,” he said, when he finally got the creases just right. Rey molded herself to his back, wrapped her arms around his waist, and slipped a hand down his front to cup him through his jeans. 

“You don’t say,” she whispered into his skin as he gasped, and grabbed the banister. 

“How about we don’t fall?” He twisted half around and cocked an eyebrow, his serious tone completely ruined by the hot flush in his cheeks. “Again.”

Rey groaned in mock exasperation.

“Good point,” she said, and released him. She climbed up a step and reached for his hand.

Luke hauled her in close as soon as they reached the top, fisted his hand in her hair, and hauled her head back so he could press hot, open-mouthed kisses along the delicate line of her throat. Rey gasped and dug her fingers into his back as he unhooked her bra, and trailed the rough pads of his fingers up and down the center of her back. Not to be outdone, she walked him backwards to the bedroom, and then snaked her hand in between them and flicked open the top button of his jeans. 

“Got you,” she whispered, when they stood over her bed, tracing a finger along the line of his zipper, heat shooting through her as she felt the growing bulge. 

Luke groaned, a tremor running the length of his body. He kissed her as though he was trying to climb inside, hands sweeping up and down her sides. Rey pulled back slightly, breathing hard, her cheeks flushed, sweat beading between her breasts. Slowly, she slipped her hands lower, opening his zipper, and grasping his waistband. She caught his eye, just to check, and found him just as flushed and breathless as her, pupils blown wide and dark, his lips swollen, and slightly wet.

 _I did that,_ thought Rey. She could only imagine what she looked like, hair a rumpled mess, bra hanging loose, her lower lip trembling. Just a little. 

He nodded. She lowered his pants, dropping to one knee, her eyes never leaving his face. Luke swallowed as she tapped his shin, indicating that he sit, and lift his feet so that she could remove his pants. He sat, and shuddered as she tugged them off fast, taking his socks with them. She paused, considered as she knelt, hands on his legs, feeling him shiver. Then she surged up and stood between his legs, steadying herself on his shoulder as she scrabbled at her own jeans with considerably less finesse.

“Fuck…” she hissed, as her third tug did absolutely nothing. Luke shook his head, tsked, and swatted her hands away. He had her zipper down and her jeans around her knees before she could blink. 

“Show off,” she muttered, and pushed him onto his back. 

Luke lay on his side, propped up on his elbow while she kicked off her jeans and socks, and lifted her hand to the bra strap hanging loose on her shoulder. Rey’s heart thudded as, once again, that thread of scarred fear skittered under her skin. 

_It’s Luke. He won’t --_

She scooted closer and knelt next to him, reaching for his hand. For a moment, she just held on, eyes squeezed tight, grounding herself in the strong grip. She let herself remember. Then she opened them again, thrumming with the difference between Luke and that other, and watched him watch her. 

She saw desire, anticipation, and…A flicker in his eyes, a bright focus taking in every inch of her.

The sharp lines of his form tightening with nervousness. 

He sat up halfway.

“Rey, I – “

She tossed her bra over her shoulder and curled into his heat. 

Luke groaned, low and rough, his chest shuddering underneath her as skin met skin. She straddled his thigh and ground against him, biting her lip at the hard drag against her folds. 

“I’m on the pill,” she gasped, as Luke cupped the soft swell of her breast and kneaded gently. “So you don’t – ah – “ Rey bit her lip as he took a painfully hard nipple into his mouth, and laved it hot and wet. He pulled back and nodded. 

“Here…” He guided her hand to his briefs. It was his turn to groan as she slipped her hand inside, head thudding back against the headboard when she took him in hand. 

“I’ve got you,” Rey whispered. Soon she had him free, heavy and hot in her hand. Luke’s fingers twisted in the bedsheets. 

“Rey – It’s – It’s been awhile – I won’t – “ 

“Me neither,” she whispered, and slipped out of her panties. 

She was shaking. Her core throbbed with heat. She moved to straddle him, moaning as he surged up to grip her hips hard enough to bruise, and pressed hot, hard against her slick folds, so close…

Luke rested his forehead against hers. Rey’s blood pounded in her ears. 

They shared breath.

Then she shifted up, and took him. 

Everything fell away, except for the thick ache of him inside her, the rough moan in her ear, and the deep thrum of his heart against her chest.

They moved together, breath harsh in the still air, taking it slow, growing used to the rhythm and pull of each other’s bodies. Rey flowed with him, clutched at his back, sounds welling up deep inside her as his muscles rolled and clenched, tightened and loosened. A balance of force and sweetness. 

Rey throbbed around him, crying out as he tightened his grip and flipped them smoothly. She locked her legs around his waist, pulling him down into her. They were as close as they could be.

Luke held her tightly when she shook apart, whispered in her ear as she clung to him. Rey pulled him into a deep twist of tongue and teeth. She moved with him until he followed her down.

Rey fell asleep in his arms, warm breath on her neck, the deep thud of his heart at her back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Yep. So that happened. Hopefully it fits with the pace of the story!  
> 2\. This won't be the last we see of *that* ;)  
> 3\. I couldn't resist the Huddling for Warmth trope. It is the greatest and the best thing <3  
> 4\. My headcanon is that Luke is a total beast in the rack as soon as all the relationship gets serious, and all the bedroom ground rules are established. Whoooo!  
>  **EDIT:** There is also now an illustration: [NSFW, of the 'strategic shadow and sheet placement' variety. ](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8282318/chapters/19859035)


	13. Snowed In: Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When it snows in Niima Cove, it SNOWS. So on cold, stormy days, most of the locals stay inside. Entertainment options include: 
> 
> 1\. Curling up next to the fire with a hot drink and a giant, fluffy blanket.  
> 2\. Sitting near the window with a fluffy blanket and a hot drink, and watch all the majestic NATURE going on outside and  
> 3\. All of that, except there are 2 people in the blanket and clothing is optional.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things get a bit emotional in here. BEHOLD THE FLUFF.  
> ...Also, this gets a bit more, eh, *specific* than the last chapter. If you know what I mean. ;)  
> And...Happy Belated Valentine's Day!!

Everything was so… _bright._ Even when he closed his eyes. 

Rey’s bed was set next to one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. She hadn’t put up the curtains yet, so there was nothing but hundred-year-old glass and chipped paint separating them from the snow. Luke flinched as the wind rattled the panes. He unconsciously pulled Rey closer to his chest as a frisson of cold air snaked its way through the cracks in the frame. 

Luke lay as still as he could, a shining twist of Rey’s hair tickling his nose, some quiet part of him certain that if he moved too quickly, or looked too close, she would disappear, fade into the bright roar of snow. 

Luke disentangled his arm as carefully as he could and tugged the covers up over them more fully. 

It was damn cold in there, and the last thing he wanted to do was get up for more blankets, or to check the thermostat or the door. Rey seemed to agree. She mumbled drowsily, and tugged his arm up close to her chest.

No, he’d be happy if they never got up at all.

 _Listen to yourself,_ said the part of his mind that wasn't swamped in bliss.

Luke, for once, decided to ignore it. He shoved away his misgivings, the not-quite-fear that he’d left behind in the hallway outside, when Rey hung back in her doorway, face flushed, eyes wide and liquid, and asked him in for coffee. She’d gone quiet, as though she thought that he was going to leave, to yell, or push her away. He saw that quiet when there was entirely too much going on behind her dark, lovely eyes. 

And speaking of quiet…

Luke knew that she wouldn't be asleep for long. The sudden tension in her limbs, the deliberate, deep, breaths said it all. He smiled against her skin, and ran his hand along the smooth curve of her waist, the dips in her ribs, and the little hollows and valleys of her hips, her spine, and the tight smooth muscle of her legs. Silk hiding steel.

He felt her thighs tense in response, her breathing quickening, and traced a long line from her waist to her knee, increasing the firmness of his strokes each pass.

Finally he stopped, humming with pleasure at her muffled protest. She twisted part way around and lifted her thigh, grinding back against him languidly.

Luke's fingers tightened. He leaned in and kissed her neck, savoring the quickening pulse and rising heat.

She turned to face him, twining her fingers in his hair, and pulled him into a deep, questing kiss. It was Luke's turn to tense, to pause for breath. He slipped his hand to her waist.

"So you're awake," he murmured, when he managed to pull back. Just a little.

Rey's eyes were huge and dark, softened in the dim, muted, quiet light underneath the sheets. And no less intense for it.

As always, those eyes drew him in, pulled at his heart. It would be disorienting, terrifying, if it wasn't her. Everything else fell away. The new, crisp sheets, the fresh, barely used mattress, the covers overhead shielding them from the cold, warming themselves with each other's heat… It faded at the edges, slid back and went fate and reedy, unimportant. He fell into her. Not drowning. She already had his breath. And that was all right. 

As far as Luke was concerned, she could have it all.

Luke sometimes had issues with… Well, words. Out loud, anyway. An odd problem for a writer… But the truth of the matter was that he was much better on paper. But like this, her body twined with his, warm and soft, her eyes liquid pools of heat, he wanted to say something, to tell her… No _show_ her what she meant to him. And all of his words seemed dull, trite, flat. He had to think of something later, something… When he wasn't so…so…

"You're thinking," she whispered.

He bit his lip. It was more like feeling, really. How did you voice that? Shape the words, to just tell her how his fear was both dead and gone and climbing impossibly high. That if she let him go, pulled away, he might just fall through the glass and scatter in the rising storm. So he said the only thing that he could think of. 

_I don't want to leave,_ he thought.

"Can we stay here for a while?" he said.

Rey blinked. Luke frowned, and leaned back a little as her entire body tensed. Her upper lip trembled.

_I can leave, if you want…_

He knew he should say it. But he couldn't force the words out. His voice sounded fragile and shaky in his own head. And then he saw that… _something,_ that ache twined in with her smile, the thing that meant that she was about to look away from him. And to think that it was there, now…

He'd wondered about it for weeks, long before the incident with Kylo. He'd known that something was going on, that something had happened, for that thing to grow inside her eyes.

Luke faced the sickening truth: his nephew had put it there.

"Rey -- I --"

She stopped his words with her mouth. Luke gasped as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her leg came up to draw him closer. Her palms splayed across his back, warm and strong and _there._ He hoped that she hadn't noticed the shudder in his chest as he gathered up her living heat.

She molded herself against him, one leg twining over his hip. Luke groaned roughly as he felt himself stirring again.

Still too soon – he wasn't 30 anymore – but it was a promise of things to come. And he certainly could take care of her in the meantime. His breath quickened, thinking of her coming apart in his arms. But he wasn't sure if that was what she wanted, just then. He drew back a hair and brushed his lips gently against hers, shivering at the friction. Rey gave a soft cry and rolled onto her back, gripping his shoulder and tugging him over her. She looked up at him, her eyes huge, and bracketed his hips with her thighs. Luke braced himself on his elbows, instinctively shifting up as her foot dragged along the back of his leg.

A smile flickered across her face. Rey took his hand and lifted it up to plant a kiss on the palm, and then press it against her cheek. Her hips canted up, rolling against him.

His doubt over her intentions evaporated. 

“Stay,” she whispered. “It’s early. And look.” Rey nodded at the snow accumulating on the outside window ledge. “It’s not like we’re going anywhere.” She grinned impishly, a sudden swell of happiness that made Luke’s chest tight.

He couldn’t help but smile back.

“You have a point there,” he said, quirking his eyebrow. “But there’s a problem…”

Rey frowned. Her thighs tightened.

“What problem?” 

“Well…What in the world are we going to do with ourselves, trapped inside like this?” he murmured.

Rey looped an arm around his neck and arched up, pressing her breasts against his chest.

“I can think of a few things…” she said in his ear. 

Luke rumbled his assent and guided her back down. He disentangled himself and pressed her hands to the mattress, drawing back slowly to take in the view. 

Rey lay open before him, her lips swollen and wet, hair askew and wild. The hot blush blooming across her cheeks was rapidly spreading across her skin. Sweat beaded on the dip at the base of her throat, and between her small -- _perfect_ \-- breasts. Best of all…That fierce, dark gaze was utterly focused. On _him,_ of all people. His abdomen tightened, heat surging deep inside as she tasted him with her eyes. 

Luke suspected that he was going to be ready again _much_ faster than usual. 

He smiled lazily and let his gaze slide over her curves, flushing himself as she reacted to his perusal. Her breath sped up -- doing some truly marvelous things to her breasts – and she shifted her thighs further apart, biting her lip as she tugged him closer. 

Then she blinked, and looked down.

"You’re…"

Luke smiled, his eyes crinkling up at the edges.

"You think I'm not getting anything out of this?" He murmured, carding his fingers through her hair. Rey blinked up at him. The sheer _confusion_ was enough to make his heart ache. 

“I…”

Luke decided, then and there, to change that.

"What about… This..."

He kissed her, slow and deep, humming with contentment as she responded with a soft moan, his tongue swiping playfully along hers.

"And this..." He deepened the kiss, and ghosted his fingertips along her collarbone, smiling at her shiver and the rising flush on her cheeks.

He moved lower with every slow press and stroke of his fingers, marveling at the softness of her skin, until his hand rested in the valley of her breasts. He broke the kiss and dragged his mouth along her jawline.

“You’re beautiful, you know,” he whispered. “I haven’t told you yet, have I?” Rey’s flush deepened. She swallowed, her pulse fluttering under his lips. 

“You know,” she replied, hesitant. “I – I don’t think you have -- Luke!” Rey arched up off the mattress as he slid lower still, and his mouth closed around a nipple. Her fingers twisted in the sheets as he laved at her pebbling flesh. He cupped her other breast in his palm, kneading the silken flesh, rumbling with pleasure as she arched into his touch. Rey clapped her hand over her mouth, choking off a cry. Luke lifted his head.

“The walls are rather thick,” he said conversationally. “And with the storm outside…” He caught her eye and grinned wickedly. “You have a lovely voice.” 

Rey _whimpered._

He chuckled, and trailed his fingertips down her body, each little gasp and twitch feeding the fire inside him. Her self-consciousness slipped away when he cupped her center and pressed lightly, biting his lip as she bucked against him. 

“Luke – “ Rey gave a soft cry as he parted her folds, sliding easily through her ready heat. “Luke – Please – “

“You feel…amazing,” he whispered against her throat. “I could do this for hours – Ah – “ He gasped as Rey went on the offensive, tugging at his shoulders, his hair, dragging him down to meet her. She teased his lips open deftly, stealing his breath. He opened for her, sucking her tongue deep into his mouth, suddenly lightheaded. Then she rocked against his hand and _moaned._

“Luke…” She reached for his hand. 

He obliged, steadied her hip with his other hand, and slipped a finger inside her. His mouth grew dry as she accepted him easily, a soft sigh falling from her lips as he stroked her, eyes locked on her face. Her hand flew to his waist and lingered there, light and warm, tracing slow, teasing circles into his skin. 

Luke’s breath stuttered as she slipped that feather touch lower and took him in hand. 

“Hmm…” Rey hummed, fingers circling his heated flesh. “There it is.” 

Luke groaned, his grip on her tightening.

Apparently, he’d been right about that speedy recovery.

Rey smiled brilliantly when she came to the same conclusion. She matched her touch to the rhythm of his hand, and it was so, so easy to imagine – no, _remember_ \-- what she had felt like wrapped around him; velvet, shaking heat, as close to him as two humans could be. Soon he was gasping against her shoulder, sweat beading on his forehead, both hands twisting in the sheets. 

“Rey – that’s – I won’t –“

She had mercy, and shifted away, scooting up the bed to rest against the pillow. Getting comfortable. 

Luke took a moment to regain his control. And to just _look_ at the young woman reclining in a sea of blankets and winter light.

Noticing his hesitance, Rey propped herself up on her elbows and beckoned. 

“Come here,” she murmured, her voice soft. 

He went to her, his senses whirling with the press of her hands on his hips, her hot breath against his throat. And when she drew him close, down, _in,_ and her voice went high, and then rough and full of need, Luke forgot what had been holding him back.

It was different, that time. They had already danced wild with that simple, edged _want,_ the need to climb into each other’s skin. _Take the edge off,_ as the saying went, when the desire was sharp and new, a wild hunger for each other's bodies and breath. 

Now, she pulled at him, gripping him fiercely, clutching at his arms, his shoulders. Calling to him, asking him to _stay, just a little while, be with me for this day, this night._ Asking for --

He gave her everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Damn it, this was a long-ass time between updates. Again. I've mentioned in the comments that I have a bit of a perfectionism complex about this story...Which means a writing block. I think I've beaten it back a bit.
> 
> 2\. Trying to avoid the Purple Prose thing, but IMHO there needed to be some introspection. Their relationship just took a huge step, after all.


	14. Snowed In: Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The storm brings Leia an unexpected visitor. Luke and Rey, however, are not going anywhere anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is kinda short, but it's meant to be. Pacing!! And we're moving into the next stage of this story, so it needs a transition.

Rey didn't want to move.

 

Actually, she wasn't sure she could, not with the comforting weight of Luke's arm draped across her.

 

He was sprawled on his stomach, still breathing hard, his beard prickling her shoulder. Rey turned her head – all that she could move, really – and faced him.

 

His eyes were half open. A slow smile spread across his face when he noticed her looking.

 

And Lord help her, Rey’s heart fluttered.

 

"Hi," she whispered.

 

"Hi," Luke replied, and pressed a kiss to her shoulder.

 

Rey scooted closer and tugged his arm more fully across her chest. Luke hummed happily, and pulled the covers up over them. Rey sighed with contentment and she pressed her body to his. Somehow, he was even warmer than her.

 

Luke mumbled a thank you and rested his head against her shoulder. His arm slid lower, and Rey found herself melting further into the mattress as a warm hand cupped her breast.

 

Luke smiled into her skin. Rey sighed happily, and settled back into the sheets, looping her arm up on the pillows so that she could play with his hair. And keep touching him.

 

 

*

 

 

Leia peered out the window and frowned.

 

"Come on Artoo,” she said, tapping his leash against the doorframe.

 

The old dog yawned, got halfway to his feet, and stared at the snow choked window. He huffed, as if incredulous, and plopped back down onto his enormous, plaid pillow near the fireplace.

 

"You're going to regret this later," she said, shaking her head. “We’re supposed to get at least a foot tonight.” Leia strode into the living room and knelt at his side. “I know _I_ wouldn’t want to use the bathroom in a snowstorm.”

 

Artoo blinked at her, and then hauled himself to his feet with a tired whine.

 

"Good boy… Come on, this will only take a minute."

 

Artoo snorted, probably because that certainly wasn't up to _her_ , was it? But he let her clip the leash to his collar.

 

Leia rubbed his head with a smile, stood, and zipped up her padded, down coat. She led the old Lab to the door, feeling a little like a stuffed potato between the puffy coat and the fuzzy scarf wrapped over her face. She stepped carefully down the deck steps, now thoroughly covered in snow, gasping a bit as Artoo tugged impatiently, throwing her balance off.

 

“Hold on,” she muttered, gripping the railing for support. “Some of us only have two legs.”

 

But she made it, and walked Artoo out into the snow, wincing as the air bit her nose. She could barely make out the fence at the end of the yard – the posts were nothing but gray shadows in the whirl of white.

 

Artoo’s enthusiasm ended when he sunk up to his belly in the snow. He whined, leaped out, and headed down the rapidly disappearing track in the snow that she dug for him. He glanced back at her accusingly as he got down to business.

 

"I don't make the weather, you goof." Leia grumbled.

 

Her voice was lost in the wind.

 

Snow pattered on her coat, some melting immediately, but far more sticking. She squinted, looking out towards the horizon. The view wasn't much better than it had been through her kitchen window.

 

 _At least I can see the drop off,_ she thought.

 

The lack of visibility was one of the reasons why she had Artoo on the leash. The old dog was smart, but she didn't want him to wander off into the storm. Or slip under the fence, and fall over the cliff into the sea.

 

The mere thought made her shiver.

 

And to think it had almost happened to Luke…Twice.

 

Leia’s stomach swooped sickeningly. An old memory resurfaced; _Luke clinging to the railing, shaking with cold, his fingers slipping inch by inch as rusted steel groaned. Her fingers tight on the wheel of Han’s ship, salt water streaming in through the cracked window, stinging her eyes_.

 _Lando yelling in panic as she angled the_ Falcon _closer, closer to the reef…_

 

"It's a good thing _you_ listen to me," she said. The storm was growing angrier by the minute. She could barely make out the dark, roiling sea. But she could feel it. The surf crashed on the cliff side and growled on the cliffs of the Cove like a wild thing.

 

Leia glanced back to the house. Warm light shone through the window.

"All set Artoo?" she called, a lump growing in her throat. Artoo barked, shook himself, and bounded back towards her.

 

 _Maybe I’ll light a fire today,_ she thought, placing her feet carefully on the slick deck steps. _Then, if the power goes out…_

 

And she needed a fire that night. Maybe was the crackling of the flames, or the feeling of stepping into a globe of warmth, but the house always felt less empty.

 

On a night like this, Leia needed some company.

 

 

*

 

 

Leia didn't see the truck until it was halfway up the driveway. She had just stoked the fireplace, and was headed for the bedroom to dig her thick, woven afghan out of the closet, anticipating curling up by the fire with a mug of tea, when Artoo jumped up and ran to the door.

 

Leia peered at the window. Powerful headlights glowed through the snow. She tensed. Then she snapped into action. She pulled on her steel toed boots, snatched the rifle out of the cupboard under the stairs, and planeted herself against the doorframe, out of view.

 

"Hold on Artoo," she muttered, squinting out into the dark.

 

Artoo waited next to her, his tail wagging hesitantly.

 

She edged forward as the engine grew louder.

 

_That engine…_

 

Abruptly, a blocky, gray truck emerged from the storm.

 

Leia relaxed. She chuckled to herself, and hung up the rifle.

 

Five minutes later there came a knock on the door. A fountain of inventive cursing erupted as snow slid off the overhang and onto the two shivering figures standing on her doorstep. The taller one laughed roughly, and rumbled something about _watching where you stand it's a freaking storm._

 

"Leia?"

 

She let him sweat a little.

 

Then she opened the deadbolt and ushered him inside.

 

Artoo barked a greeting and jumped up onto Hans leg, tongue lolling enthusiastically. Leia’s husband grinned and rubbed the Lab’s head affectionately.

 

"Boots go over there," she said crisply. Inside, though, she was positively leaping for joy. "You too, Chewie."

 

Han nodded obediently. He gave her a lopsided, slightly sheepish grin.

 

"Nice weather were having, isn't it?"

 

She snorted, and took his coat.

 

"You should've called," she said, turning toward the kitchen.

 

"The phone lines are down," he said, his eyes crinkled at the edges. Leia pursed her lips.

 

"Come on in," she said. "I just started a fire. Oh – take Artoo out, please… He's dying to see you."

 

"Yes dear," said Han, mock annoyance in his voice. But he grinned, and pulled his boots back on. Chewie chuckled, snow tumbling everywhere as he shook his shaggy head. Leia had once asked the improbably large man when he’d last shaved, and had been pointedly ignored.

 

“Oh, for…” Leia rolled her eyes as the foyer began to resemble the outside steps. She held up her hand when Chewie tried to step forward. “Coat. Off.” She passed him a towel as he laid it across the drying rack. “I just cleaned in here.”

 

“Thank you, Leia,” said Chewie, his deep voice rumbling with warmth. “It is good to see you.” Leia smiled back.

 

“And you. Now, come in…Careful!” She nudged Han’s friend around the widening puddle of melted snow. “Have a seat. I was just making some tea.” She pulled out a chair at the kitchen table.

 

Han waved at her through the window, his grin evident even through the whirl of snow. Leia couldn’t help but grin back.

 

They had a lot to talk about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Yay!! Han and Chewie!  
> 2\. We are officially in the next stage of this story.  
> 3\. Yes, Anakin went full Vader in this 'verse. There were problems. But he redeems himself in the end.  
> 4\. You know how I mentioned that the reef is dangerous? Especially in the winter? Yep.


	15. Snowed In Part 3: Coffee and Blankets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Rey aren't the only ones who got snowed in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, kind of filling in some blanks while I get back into the writing groove... and take a quick look into Kylo's head. More notes at the END of the chapter, aaaaack.  
> Also, Finn fixed Rey's 'fridge in the near past :)

Kylo Ren sat on his wide, black leather couch, staring at his phone. He scowled. It might as well have been a brick. His feeds were silent. No messages for the past 5 hours. Both his wireless connection and the 5G were down. The storm, no doubt.

He made a mental note to fire the Director of Jakku Electrical Facilities as soon as he got a signal.

 _At least I’ve got power_ , he thought _. And heat._ The backup generator in his building was running strong. There was enough fuel in there for over a week.

A small smirk tugged at his lips. It’d be business as usual for him when half the city was showering at the gym, or trying to salvage the contents of their refrigerators with blocks of ice…

Kylo flinched. _His_ mother had certainly never needed to do _that…_ Even when hurricanes blasted the Cove, and snow engulfed whatever little house or apartment building they’d been in, they’d always been prepared. His father and Chewie had made a point of keeping the heating system in good repair…even if it had been obnoxiously loud and clunky, _always_ waking him up at night…

Then where had that thought come from?

Kylo’s entire body tensed as he realized.

_Her._

It had been an especially bad storm. The one time he’d lost power in over five years of living in the penthouse. They’d woken up in the dark and cold, and he’d immediately gotten on his phone – thankfully fully charged – and gotten a repair team out to the building. After over 10 minutes of arguing, mind you, but still.

And he’d come back into the bedroom to find her gone. Or, well…she’d been running around the kitchen in one of his shirts, looking for duct tape to seal the fridge. And moving things from said fridge to the freezer.

 _To keep it cold as long as possible,_ she’d said. _No ice, but there’s a lot here_ … _We’ll have to eat the perishable stuff first, but…_

He’d stopped her, then. Pulled her into his arms, and told her that it’d all be back to normal, soon. He’d fixed it.

She’d stood rigidly there for a moment, her dark eyes full of confusion. He’d tilted her head up, and promised that she wouldn’t have to worry.

 _Oh…That’s what all the yelling was about_ , she’d said, her voice quiet.

 _Yes,_ he’d said. _It’s fine. This won’t be a problem again. Go back to bed_.

Then he’d stepped back and taken in the scene. Boxes and cans everywhere. Utensils and cooking tools strewn across the counter. The steaks he’d been saving for tonight were next to the sink, the plastic already beading up with condensation…

 _I was looking for candles…and batteries…_ she’d said quietly.

 _What a mess,_ he’d said, with a frown. _A pointless mess…_

She’d stepped away, nodded, and started cleaning up. He’d watched her for a moment, and then headed to the bedroom.

 _Don’t be long,_ he’d called back _. The bed’s getting cold…_

Kylo shook off the memory. _Such a silly girl…_ She’d never understood. She wasn’t living like that anymore; such things were beneath them. And as long as she was with him, she’d never have to worry. She’d always be warm, always be safe. No checking the door constantly, making sure it was locked. No triple-checking the food budget. No secondhand clothes…

And she’d never be alone again.

Kylo was struck, suddenly, by something that Alastair Snoke had said, less than a week ago.

_You can take a rat out of the gutter…but it’ll never stop scrabbling._

His jaw clenched. Rey…wasn’t a rat. But she’d grown up like one, learned all the habits of the worst of them. And he’d tried to make her _better,_ tried to show her a different way, one that he’d fought for.

He looked over his shoulder. The kitchen was spotless, as always. Though he wasn’t sure how long it’d stay that way. The help that came every other day certainly didn’t live in the building. He scowled.

The streets had better be clear by noon tomorrow…

 

***

 

The snow was still falling when Rey came back to herself. She turned her head, and smiled at the soft tuft of greying blond hair peeking up from underneath the covers. Luke had managed to wriggle further underneath said covers while they dozed, his head on the pillow next to hers, his beard tickling her neck.

She grinned and glanced at the bedside clock. Her eyes widened. It was early afternoon…and here they were, still in bed, curled up with each other in their private pocket of warmth.

 _I really_ did _lose track of time,_ she thought. 

Not that that was a bad thing…

And she definitely knew of one way they could stay here awhile longer…

“I’ll be right back,” she whispered, and snuck her head under the covers to kiss his forehead.

“Mmph,” said Luke. “Do you have to?” He draped an arm over her waist and tugged her closer.

“Just for a little bit,” she said, smiling. “I promise…” She kissed him again, this time on his lips. Luke smiled against her and kissed her back, warm and firm.

“Hurry back,” he murmured. “It’s cold out there…”

Rey grinned and looked around the room. Strategy was key, for this sort of thing. Luke’s shirt – her definite first choice – was somewhere on the stairs. _I’m pretty sure, anyway_ …Her eyes fell on her open closet, and then the half-open sock drawer.

_Aha!_

“Get ready,” she whispered. “One…two…three…” She jumped out of bed and dashed toward the closet. Luke yelped and tugged the covers back up over his head.

“Stay there!” she said, and tugged a huge grey bathrobe out of the closet. She threw it at his head and ran to the dresser. She dug through the back quickly, finally dragging out a huge blue-and-red-checked flannel shirt. She put it on, along with a pair of oversized, wooly socks.

Luke looked at the bathrobe, and then back to her.

“Don’t you want this?” Rey shook her head.

“I’m good…look!” The shirt came down low, almost to her knees. “And pull that under the covers…warm it up.” Luke cocked an eyebrow, and did as she said, shivering as it touched his legs. “Now, stay there…I’ll be right back…”

Rey headed out into the upstairs hallway, wincing as the cold air hit her. It was much more obvious out here, though the boiler was clearly hard at work. She laid her hand on an exposed pipe near the stairs, and grinned. The apartment wasn’t going to get anywhere near hot, but it’d do.

She headed down the stairs and tugged the space heater – _still running_ , she noted with a wince – into the kitchen. She kept to the tiles and busied herself with loading up the coffee maker.

The fridge was, against all odds, still alive. _Finn’s genius at work,_ she thought, shaking her head. She still moved three bags of ice from the freezer to the fridge. She arranged them in a circle around the milk, eggs, and the vegetables she’d planned on using in a stew this weekend. If the freezer failed…they’d last a bit longer.  

It took a few minutes for the water to heat up. Rey walked into the living room and paced to keep herself warm, sticking her hands deep inside the long sleeves. She circled the room, checking the windows carefully. Poe had done an excellent job reinforcing the decades-old frames, and they’d lasted for a long time without incident…but you never know. The windows took up nearly the entire wall; if something broke, she would have a serious problem.

Fortunately, everything was intact. Rey smiled a little, relieved. The old bones of the building might rattle and creak in the wind, but they were solid. She stood on the carpet facing the couch, coffee in hand, and looked out over the expanse. Everything was still, the kind of hushed quiet that only a sudden snowfall could bring. She took a few steps forward, pausing at the line between cold and heat. The pipes clanked as the boiler room pushed hot water up to her apartment. Cold seeped through the glass in front of her. She could feel the divide, could move in and out of it, almost as though it was a physical thing.

And standing there, she was keenly aware of the fact that there was only glass and old brick between her and the storm.

But it was enough. And they could reinforce it if they had to. They could huddle together under the covers if the power went out, or the boiler died. They could light candles when it grew dark, and cook their meals on the hot plate in Luke’s apartment…Or the fireplace…

Rey smiled, and headed back upstairs.

Luke was considerably more awake when she entered the bedroom. He was sitting up in bed -- wrapped up in the bathrobe, but still very much under the covers -- and looking out of the window, lost in thought. His face lit up when he saw her in the door. She climbed back into bed and passed him a mug. He grinned and tugged the covers back up over them both.

“Good afternoon,” she said, after they were thoroughly cocooned.

“Same to you,” said Luke. He raised his mug and clinked it against hers. He grinned, watching her face, his eyes focused, and, perhaps, a little surprised.

Rey wrestled down a pang of anxiety.

 _Surprised that I’m here?_ She thought, not quite considering what _kind_ of surprise it was.

She smiled instead, stacked pillows up behind them, and settled in against his shoulder. They watched the storm.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AUUUGH I'm sorry for the long update gap! Long story short, I got a new job, and it proceeded to thoroughly kick my ass. Weekend wipeout ensued. But...7 months later...I think it's settling down. And, frankly, November is the PERFECT time for this story. 
> 
> ......And the fact that I have about a month to wrap this up before Ep 8 drops has not escaped me. The Goal is finishing this in 3 chapters. ****hugs everyone**** You guys are SERIOUSLY THE FREAKING BEST for sticking with this story. You all ROCK!!

**Author's Note:**

> Pinterest Board Ahoy! [Here!](https://www.pinterest.com/onelightpoint/you-me-ice-cream-and-a-bicycle/)  
> Also, my [dreamwidth blog](http://lightpoint.dreamwidth.org) has a section with a bunch of my fic brainstorming, because I do that ^_^  
> And [Tumblr! ](http://onelightpoint.tumblr.com)


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